A young Utah man who worked for years to recover from a brain injury suffered during a longboarding accident was recently struck and killed by a car. 

Wesley Hadfield, 24, died on Monday while crossing an intersection around 12.40pm in Orem, a city just south of Salt Lake City. 

A team of medics on their lunch break saw the crash and rushed over to the young man immediately to try to save him, but he was already dead and they were unable to resuscitate him, his family said on social media. 

Four years ago this month, Hadfield was riding his electric longboard without a helmet and got into an accident that left him with a brain injury. 

His father, Varden Hadfield, told ABC4: ‘He required emergency transport and a craniectomy, was in the hospital for four months, almost died several times and has been on a long journey of a very difficult recovery ever since.’ 

Since that accident in 2022, Wesley had to relearn how to do things most people take for granted, including walking and talking. 

But he was determined to get better, and he persevered through the challenges. The young man documented his recovery journey on Instagram, where he garnered nearly 90,000 followers and inspired countless people. 

Wesley’s mother, Becky Ahlborn, told ABC4: ‘A lot of people with brain injuries have reached out to us and just said because Wesley was fighting so hard and he had such a positive attitude, “I got myself out of bed this morning and I gave it another shot.”‘

Wesley Hadfield, 24, was struck and killed by a car in Orem, Utah, on Monday after spending four years recovering from a traumatic brain injury

Wesley’s father, Varden Hadfield, said his son ‘was in the hospital for four months [and] almost died several times’ after a 2022 electric longboard crash. The father and son are pictured

Wesley persevered through his brain injury and made a remarkable recovery. He moved out of his parents’ house about 15 months ago and was enrolled as a student at Utah Valley University

Just over a year ago, Wesley made enough progress that he was able to move out of his parents’ home and live on his own. 

He enrolled as a full-time student at Utah Valley University, and his recovery was so dramatic and impressive that he was invited to give a talk at a trauma conference in May, Varden told ABC4. 

Wesley’s family said on social media that the surgeon who worked on Wesley after his fatal crash even recognized the young man from the presentation he gave at the conference.

Varden said that his son was passionate about helmet safety because he did not want anyone else to experience the same kind of injury and recovery process he went through.

As a result, the last paper Wesley wrote for his advanced writing class was about using helmets and trying to figure out a way to make people want to wear them rather than feeling like they are forced to, Varden said.

The father told ABC4 that the news of his son’s death was sudden and shocking. He found out on Monday while he was backing out of his driveway and two police officers approached and told him what happened. 

‘I’d been on the phone with him an hour before and I’d been with him two hours before, and he was so excited about life – shopping for a new pair of hiking shoes because he loved the outdoors, loved nature,’ Varden told the outlet. 

Becky told ABC4 that she had plans to have dinner with her son and his girlfriend the night he was killed. 

Wesley documented his recovery on Instagram, where he garnered nearly 90,000 followers. He is pictured completing an activity to help with his recovery

Varden said the news of his son’s death was shocking, as the two had spoken over the phone just an hour earlier. The father and son are pictured together

Wesley was passionate about helmet use and wrote a paper for his advanced writing class about how to make people want to wear helmets rather than feeling forced to

‘There’s just no words to describe what it’s like to lose him after saving him the first time and coming as far as he’s come,’ she said.

Wesley’s parents held a candlelight vigil for him on Wednesday evening. They vowed to carry on his mission of promoting helmet use and advocating for safety. 

‘Wear your helmet,’ Becky told ABC4. 

‘Hug your loved ones. There’s things helmets won’t save you from, and you never know when the day is your last… Appreciate every moment you have and try to cherish those times with your family and your loved ones,’ she added. 

Wesley’s parents are accepting donations on his memorial page, which will go toward funeral expenses. Any leftover funds will be donated to charities that support brain injury prevention.