Laura Lynch, Founding Member of The Chicks, Dead at 65 After Texas Car Crash: 'Special Place in Our Hearts'

The group's current lineup remembered Lynch as a "bright light" in a social media statement on Saturday

Laura Lynch, a founding member of country group The Chicks, has died at the age of 65 in a Texas car crash.

The musician, who served as an original bassist and vocalist of the group formerly known as the Dixie Chicks, died in a head-on collision Friday on a highway in Hudspeth County, Sgt. Eliot Torres of the Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed to PEOPLE.

The Chicks have since shared a statement on social media, remembering their former bandmate as a "bright light."

According to a release from the Texas Department of Public Safety, Lynch was pronounced dead at the scene of the Friday crash, which took place on Highway 62 around 5:45 p.m. MST.

Lynch was traveling eastbound on the highway as another driver — traveling westbound — attempted to pass a vehicle on a "two-way undivided portion" of the road, striking Lynch's vehicle head on, per an initial report. The driver of the vehicle that collided with Lynch was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, per the release.

The investigation is ongoing, according to the department.

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The band's official social media channels posted a statement on Saturday, noting that its members were "shocked and saddened" by the loss of Lynch, who was a member during The Chicks' formation in 1989.

In the band's tribute posted on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter), The Chicks shared a clip of Lynch performing the track "West Texas Wind" alongside her bandmates.

"We hold a special place in our hearts for the time we spent playing music, laughing and traveling together," read the statement, signed by members Natalie Maines, Emily Strayer and Martie Maguire. "Laura was a bright light…her infectious energy and humor gave a spark to the early days of our band."

"Laura had a gift for design, a love of all things Texas and was instrumental in the early success of the band," the statement continued. "Her undeniable talents helped propel us beyond busking on street corners to stages all across Texas and the mid-West. Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones at this sad time."

Lynch founded The Chicks alongside guitarist Robin Lynn Macy and sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer in 1989, per a biography from CMT.

She was part of the band during the release of their first three albums, including their 1990 debut LP Thank Heavens for Dale Evans, 1992's sophomore effort Little Ol' Cowgirl and 1993's Shouldn’t a Told You That.

She left the band in 1993, years before The Chicks welcomed current member Natalie Maines and broke into the mainstream with their fourth LP in 1998, Wide Open Spaces.

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