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The Opelika house hasn’t always been RSBN’s headquarters.

State Rep. Jeremy Gray, a legislator from nearby Opelika, said Copeland had been a “steadfast presence” after a 2019 tornado devastated rural sections of the county, killing more than 20 people.

Collins was a 2020 Opelika High School graduate who planned to start college in the fall after taking a year off to try his hand at music.

Besides Phil Dowdell, a star wide receiver with plans to play college football, those killed were fellow Dadeville High senior Shaunkivia Nicole “KeKe” Smith, 17, an athlete-turned-team manager; 2022 Opelika High School graduate Marsiah Emmanuel “Siah” Collins, 19, an aspiring singer who planned to start college this fall; and 2018 Dadeville High graduate Corbin Dahmontrey Holston, 23, another former athlete at the school.

A fourth, Marsiah Emmanuel Collins, 19, had played football at Opelika High School, about 26 miles southeast of Dadeville.