A senior at Lawrence County High School died Monday night in a one-vehicle collision after leaving work.

Dominique Barnes, 17, of Silver Creek, was pronounced dead at the scene by an official with the coroner’s office.

Barnes was traveling east on Hwy. 184 around 9:21 p.m. shortly after leaving Ramey’s Marketplace in Monticello where she worked as a cashier.

She was driving a 2006 Lexus and ran off the shoulder of the road, said Cpl. Brandon Fortenberry of the Mississippi Highway Patrol. She overcorrected and ran off the opposite shoulder and struck a tree.

She was ejected from the vehicle and died at the scene, he said.

Barnes is remembered by her bosses as a young woman who was an asset to the grocery store because she was friendly to customers and her co-workers and was always smiling.

Store Manager Brent Daniel said she had started with Ramey’s in Prentiss, and transferred to the Monticello store a few months ago.

“She comes from a real large family and everybody knew her and she knew everybody,” he said. “She will be missed.”

Lawrence County High School Principal Cedric Collins met Barnes in 2015. He said he looked forward to her smiles and “good morning” when she’d pass him in the hallway at school.

“She was the one who was joyful and cheerful, always had a smile,” he said. “She’s definitely going to be missed.”

Teacher Lisa Evans has known Barnes since her freshman year.

“I’ve watcher her grow and mature through the years,” she said.

Evans was shocked and saddened to hear about Barnes’ death.

“She had the biggest heart in the world and biggest smile in the world,” she said. “She had a smile that lit up the room. You couldn’t help but like her and if you knew her, you couldn’t help but love her.”