While Thanksgiving should have been a joyous celebration for Little Big Town's Kimberly Schlapman, the singer and her family were instead devastated by the loss of her brother-in-law to a drunk driver on Wednesday, Nov 21, near Nashville. Thomas Allen Schlapman, 45, of Lynchburg, Va., who was visiting his brother, Stephen, and sister-in-law Kimberly, was killed when the motorcycle he was riding was struck head-on in Franklin, Tenn. According to the Lynchburg News & Advance, police said Gregory Powers, 46, of Franklin, crossed the center line of Franklin Road, colliding with Schlapman's motorcycle.

In a Facebook message, Kimberly wrote that her brother-in-law "had come to Nashville from Virginia to visit us for Thanksgiving, which is our long-standing family tradition. He is married & has a 9 year old little girl. This is a part of life that one never imagines or plans for. It has been very difficult to accept. Allen Schlapman was an amazing father, husband, brother & son. We will miss him so much. I have been deeply touched by all your well-wishes & prayers. Thank you. God has proven himself faithful to us & has given us great peace amidst this horrible tragedy."

Powers was charged with vehicular homicide and failure to maintain a lane, and the newspaper reports that investigators believed he was driving impaired and were awaiting the return of his blood-alcohol test results, with the possibility of more charges, pending the results. Powers was out on bond for driving under the influence and vehicular assault charges filed by Franklin Police in July.

Schlapman, who is survived by his wife, mother and daughter, was a fiscal analyst with the Virginia Department of Transportation. He attended Blue Ridge Community Church and was a volunteer with Rush Homes. His funeral was held Tuesday (Nov. 27) at the Whitten Timberlake Chapel.

Little Big Town shows scheduled last week in Riverside and Los Angeles, Calif., are being rescheduled. The Los Angeles show at the Wiltern Theatre, will now take place on Feb. 7, 2013. No new date has been announced for the Riverside concert.

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