ROCK HILL, S.C. — Scott Donald loved motorcycles, and, to his friends, that meant he was a brother.
Ashley Bracey said he always had her back, and everyone else's, too.
"He was always smiling. He was always greeting you with open arms," she said.
Donald, 51, owned a biker bar on McConnells Highway outside Rock Hill. On Friday afternoon, flowers were left on the front steps of the business. Donald died suddenly Thursday night. The initial report is that he was stung by a bee.
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"This comes as a shock to all of us, really,” said Bracey. “This is not anything we were prepared for.”
Close friends said Donald was cutting the grass when he was stung, possibly by more than one insect.
Friends told Channel 9 he had mentioned before that he was highly allergic and had made comments about staying away from bees. He used an EpiPen to counter the reaction, friends said, but he couldn’t recover from the sting.
Like severe food allergies, insect stings are dangerous to some.
The York County Coroner's Office told Channel 9 that one or two people a year die from insect stings. The coroner believes Donald likely died from an insect sting, but an autopsy will have to be performed to confirm that.
Jeff Towery runs the Handle Bar, another biker bar on Anderson Road. He said he knew Donald for years and admired his big heart for others.
"He's gonna be greatly missed and was greatly loved. He always made me laugh," Towery said. "If you approached us and you had a need, we would all band together as a community, the biker community, and try to provide for that need."
Donald worked on fundraisers such as poker runs, motorcycle rides and other events to help people pay medical bills or deal with a tragedy in their lives.