The Mapleton and Presque Isle High School communities are mourning the loss of 17-year-old Aaron Archer, who died from massive head injuries following a truck accident Monday evening.

State police said Archer, a resident of Mapleton and a high school junior, was driving his 1989 Toyota pickup west on Route 163 when he crossed the center line and lost control of his truck. A tractor trailer driven by Stephen Currie, 54, of Arthurette, New Brunswick, struck Archer's truck on the passenger side.

Archer was transported to The Aroostook Medical Center where he was pronounced dead at 5:08 p.m. Currie was not injured in the accident, which is still under investigation.

Presque Isle High School Principal Frank Keenan described Archer as "a great kid. Everyone who met him liked him. He had a tremendous sense of humor. If you were around him, you got a smile on your face."

Archer played on the varsity baseball team, the JV basketball team, was active in outdoor sports outside of school and Boy Scout Troop 179 in Ashland.

"He was a good, solid student," Keenan said of Archer. "He had a lot of energy and tremendous potential."

Crisis teams were available to students beginning Tuesday morning in the high school library. Student peer helpers were also on hand to councel their classmates.

Keenan said that while the school will proceed with mid-terms this week, students who are unable to participate in their grief will be excused and accommodations for make-up tests made.

Archer is survived by his parents, Lloyd and Rose Archer of Mapleton, an older brother, Jake; a paternal grandmother, Geneva Archer of Presque Isle; a maternal grandmother, Gladys Armour of Centerville, New Brunswick; and a special aunt, Mary Weston.

Visiting hours will be held today, Jan. 28, from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. at Duncan-Graves Funeral Home, State Street, Presque Isle. Services will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, at the funeral home. Memorial donations may be made to the Presque Isle Wildcat Varsity Baseball team's Florida trip, care of Presque Isle High School, 16 Fort Street, Presque Isle, ME 04769.