Deacon Bob Little of the St. Helena Catholic Church died Sunday morning following a crash about 10 miles north of Laytonville in Humboldt County.

According to Sgt. Jim Malner of the CHP Garberville office, the 63-year-old American Canyon resident was on his Yamaha motorcycle on Highway 101, north of Laytonville. According to witnesses he was going about 60 mph when he approached a stopped vehicle waiting to turn left into a driveway. Little braked and skidded to the right, around the stopped vehicle. He lost control of the motorcycle and ended up on the edge of the roadway.

Little, who was wearing a helmet and protective riding apparel, was transported via Calstar 4 helicopter to Ukiah Valley Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

Little was riding his motorcycle north to visit his daughter, Rebecca, who lives in Portland, Ore. According to Monsignor John Brenkle, he left about 7:30 a.m. and was expected to be back on Wednesday.

Brenkle said the journey from St. Helena to Portland is about eight hours and he told Little to be careful. But, he added, Little was an experienced motorcycle rider and knew what he was doing.

“On Saturday night, he had a wedding at the church and afterward he came by. We talked for a while and then he said he had to leave because he had to pack,” Brenkle recalled Monday morning.

Parishioner Patty Guijosa said Little’s death is a great loss for the local Hispanic community. Little did his best to become fluent in Spanish, and before long he was performing regular baptisms and quinceaneras.

“He had a big heart,” said Guijosa. “Anytime you wanted to talk to him he was right there. He was the kind of person who would never say no.”

Little, who had been with the St. Helena Catholic Church about seven years, is survived by his wife, Patricia, two grown daughters, Julie and Rebecca, and his brother, Walter, who is also a deacon in the Catholic church.

As of Monday morning, no services had been set.

Little worked at finding shelter, food and clothing for the Latino field workers and their families. To encourage sharing, he frequently reminded people who were oblivious to poverty that someday they might be looking for a handout from the church pantry or be looking to buy second-hand clothes from the church’s thrift store.

Mike Simmons, a deacon at American Canyon’s Holy Family Parish first met Little in the early 1990s. Both received their deacon formation through the Diocese of Santa Rosa, said Simmons, who was a year ahead of Little.

Simmons said Little was dynamic, well organized and someone who related to people really well, suspecting it was a talent that may have stemmed from Little’s past experience working as Napa County sheriff’s deputy for 15 years.

“He really liked being a deacon. He liked serving,” Simmons said.

Staff writers John Lindblom, Jesse Duarte and Carolyn Younger and Kerana Todorov contributed to this report.