New Vineyard woman who died when car went into pond remembered as a ‘super mom’

NEW VINEYARD — Collette Daggett was remembered Thursday as being a dedicated mother, caring and funny.

Emergency responders Tuesday found Daggett, 43, dead on the shore of a pond off Miller Road in New Vineyard, after the vehicle she was riding in was submerged, according to officials.

Her husband, Wilfred Daggett 42, who was driving, called for medical help for them. Collette could not be revived, officials said.

Liz Richards of Industry, right, sits next to her friend Collette Daggett of New Vineyard who was found dead Tuesday on the shore of a pond in New Vineyard. Liz Richards photo

Collette was “athletic, funny, and animated,” friend Liz Richards of Industry said Thursday. Richards had known her for four or five years and had once worked for her.

“Most important about her was she was a committed mother. That was her No. 1 priority,” she said about the mother of four daughters and a son.

“She had a great sense of humor but was not so great at poker,” Richards said laughing.

Richards said she taught Collette the game and they played socially as a group.

“She would get so excited when she had a good hand,” she said. “She didn’t have a poker face.”

Collette was a “sweetheart,” friend Shannon Smith of Wilton said.

“She would have done anything for her children,” she said, and always went to their games and traveled with them for sports. She was a “super mom.”

Collette also loved to play beano held by the Farmington Emblem Club at the Elks Lodge in Farmington.

Richards said Collette had a flair for style and was always nicely dressed.

She described Collette as athletic and said she coached and played basketball, and played with a league of women who are older.

Collette loved decorations and went nuts at Christmas time, Richards said. “She loved decorating and she just loved making a house a home.”

According to a statement Tuesday from the state police, Franklin County investigators received a medical complaint at 10:49 a.m. from a man identified as Wilfred Daggett, who reported his vehicle was submerged in a pond and requested medical assistance for himself and his wife. He was treated at Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington and released, officials said.

The accident remains under investigation.