A 38-year-old mother of two died over the weekend when she lost control of her motorcycle on a curvy road in rural Randolph County.

Lori Beth Key, GIS mapping manager for Johnston County, was killed about 11 a.m. Sunday in an accident on a scenic stretch of Old Lexington Road in the Caraway Mountains, west of Asheboro.

She was riding with a small group, including her husband, Bryan C. Key, said Terry Ellis, Johnston County’s director of technology services and Key’s boss.

Ellis said he and the other people in the office were devastated by Key’s death. He hired Key, who was originally from New Jersey, in September 2000, he said.

“She was full of life and had a good work ethic,” Ellis said Monday. “She was always friendly and available to other departments.”

Sgt. A.W. Waddell of the state Highway Patrol said Key appeared to have lost control of her 2006 Ducati motorcycle on a curve, going off the road and colliding with an embankment before going airborne.

She was wearing a helmet and was not speeding, Waddell said.

In addition to her husband, Key had two small children.

The family will receive relatives and friends at 2:30 p.m. today at McLaurin Funeral Home, which is at 12830 U.S. 70 West in Clayton. A graveside service is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at Pinecrest Memorial Park.

Condolences can be sent to the family through the funeral home’s Web site at www.mclaurinatpinecrest.com.

Key loved flowers and volunteering at her children’s school, Ellis said. She often talked about her kids, Jordan, 6, and Lexi, 3, Ellis said.

She also liked to ride her sporty Italian motorcycle, which she started taking to work a few weeks ago, Ellis said.

“She will be surely missed,” Ellis said, adding employees in the office were trying to cope with the loss.

“There will never be a person quite like her.”

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