I got off work a little early, Daniel, my middle son,
picked me up and we headed home. When I got home,
Jeff was not there, so I called his cell phone, no
answer. I called my Mom and she told me Jeff had left
with Jodi and Curtis, they had picked him up not long
before I got to the house. It wasn't twenty minutes later
that my Mom came to my house and told me there had
been a bad accident and she thinks Jeff was in the car.
We were told to get to the nearest hospital, which is St.
Elizabeth's in Gonzales. My oldest son, David drove
me and Mom to the hospital, all I remember  was
praying for my son's life and crying. As we pulled into
the parking lot of the hospital, I saw Air Med landing
not knowing if Jeff was on that helicopter or the other
Air Med chopper going to Our Lady Of The Lake
hospital. The police weren't sure who was going to
what hospital.
By this time there was so many people there, I don't
know how everyone knew so fast. We were taken in a
small waiting room where we sat for a hour or more,
then the doctor came in and told us that Jeff did not
survive. He died from a brain stem injury but he had
other injuries.  We were taken to a room to see our
Son, Brother and Grandson & Friend. He looked like
was asleep, not a mark on him that I could see. I bent
over and held him, kissed him and told him I was so so
sorry I wasn't there to protect him when he needed me.
I was told they were driving very fast, (Mustang GT)
on a very curvy road heading back to Chad's house.
They passed, then lost control of the car, it spun  at
least three times before striking a group of trees and
breaking totally in half. Jeff, Jodi and Curtis were all
ejected out of the car. This all happened in someones
front yard as they watched in horror. So many times I
preached at my Son's about that road, I hated it.
Jeffery was peacefully laid to rest on December 7, 2001
in Prairieville, Louisiana. We all miss and think about Jeff
every day, his memories live on through everyone who
knew and loved him.  One day, we'll all be together again.
Back
Who You'd Be Today ~ Kenny Chesney


Remembering Jeff
The day he flew away....
It's hard to put into words what every parent fears, the
death of your child. Each time I tell about this dreadful
day,  my heart hurts like no other pain.. We lost our
youngest son Jeff in a single car accident just three
weeks after his 18th birthday. It was Monday,
December 3, 2001 in Maurepas, Louisiana down along
the Amite River.
Jeff had spent the weekend down at  Chad's house
with a group of friends. One of the kids brought Jeff
home sometimes that morning after I had left for work,
and of course, he ate and crashed out in the living
room like he did all the time. I never thought that the
Friday before would be the last day I would see my
son alive.
About 1:00 that afternoon while working, Jeff called
me, he told me he was going to hang out at the house
and wait for me to get home.  We talked about going to
look at a car for him and what hid did over the
weekend, I told him I would try and get off work a
little early and to wait for me, of course we always told
each other "Love You" before we hung up.
Once inside the hospital, I learned Jeff was there and in
very critical condition, we could not see him because
they were working on him trying to save his life. The
accident happened around 5:00 in Maurepas, just a few
houses from Chad's house where they were going back
to. Jodi passed away at the scene, Curtis was airlifted
to the Lake we learned later that evening.
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