T.J. (age 19) was an amazing kid who stole the hearts of everybody he met, not only with his good looks, but his personality, too. Just the person he was!

He graduated from Washington High School the end of May 2010. He wanted to further his education at the ATC. He wasn’t quite sure what he wanted to do yet but was interested in being an electrician or building homes.

T.J. was very family-oriented. He would do anything and everything he could to help somebody in need. He enjoyed all things 19-year-old boys do, like sports, camping, paintballing, music, hanging out with family and friends, and trying to impress the ladies. I could go on forever telling you how great he is and about all his special qualities.

On the 25th of June, 2010, T.J., his younger brother, and a group of friends went camping. They were supposed to stay over the weekend, but early the next morning decided they’d come home to shower, then head back.

T.J. was driving his car with four passengers. While coming down Ogden Canyon, he and a friend in a vehicle behind him were passing each other. While it was all fun and laughs for them, none of them stopped to think that it was unsafe and extremely dangerous. As T.J. attempted to pass his friend’s car, he was hit head-on by a Ford F350 pickup truck, which ended up on top of his car, killing all five teens in the car instantly.

On June 26, 2010, I woke up to a phone call saying my son was dead. Hoping it was a nightmare and I’d wake up, I received a second call from my other son at the scene. He was crying, barely being able to speak, saying, “He’s gone, he’s gone, they’re all gone.”

I got the location of the crash and got there as quickly as possible. I didn’t want to believe it; it seemed so surreal. I never would have thought something this horrible would happen in real life. Seems like this kind of thing is only for movies.

It’s been a year since the crash, but it plays so vivid and in detail in my mind still to this day. My heart aches every day, not only for my son, but the other four kids and their families. The impact this crash has had on so many lives is unimaginable and unexplainable. It could so easily have been prevented. PLEASE take precautions while driving. Five young lives could have been saved by simply “following the rules.”

Five friends died in this crash.