Memorial For Former Miss New Jersey Cara McCollum To Be Held In March

OCEAN CITY, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A memorial service will be held next month to honor a former Miss America contestant who recently died from injuries suffered in a car crash on a wet New Jersey highway.

The Miss New Jersey Education Foundation is hosting the March 12 service for Cara McCollum. It will be held at the Ocean City Tabernacle at 550 Wesley Avenue in Ocean City.

The McCollum, 24,  died on Feb. 22; a week after she was injured in a one-car crash on Route 55 in Pittsgrove Township. Her funeral will be held Sunday in Forrest City, Arkansas.

Her family said in the Facebook post that the 24-year-old from Margate died with her family by her side in an operating room, and that her organs were donated.

State police say McCollum appeared to have been driving too fast for conditions on the wet road. They do not believe alcohol or drugs were a factor. The driver's side front air bag in her car deployed during the crash.

McCollum won the 2013 Miss New Jersey pageant. She was known for her public service, such as a program that presented books as birthday presents to first- and second-graders.

The Arkansas native graduated from Princeton University and was an anchor on "SNJ Today,'' a news show serving the southern Jersey area.

(TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)