The family of a 16-year-old Cheyenne East High School soccer player will celebrate his life Saturday following a July 17 ATV crash on Elk Mountain with friends that left him with brain injuries in a Denver hospital ICU.
The parents of Rielly Jay Smith have been going through a “nightmare” as they first experienced days of hope that their son’s brain swelling might go down before learning from another specialist eight days later that he h ad essentially died seconds after his crash.
Brandon Smith characterized his son Rielly as a “jokester who always made everybody smile.”
“He touched a lot of hearts and got his friends through some dark days,” Brandon Smith said.
He said Rielly was a “confident” young man who was “100%” into soccer and played forward and striker. He loved the camaraderie and “family” he made on the team.
Brandon Smith said he and Rielly were talking about his dream to play soccer in college and try and get scholarships as his junior year approached.
Rielly had gone with three buddies for a camping trip on Elk Mountain at the family property of a friend. They started riding four-wheeler ATVs within 25 minutes after they arrived, said his mom, Kazia Smith.
She said he was supposed to be on one of the machines with his friend driving, but he ended up driving one himself without a helmet and was “doing 45 mph and hit a drainage ditch with no helmet.”
‘Freak Accident’
Brandon Smith said it was really a “freak accident” because the drainage ditch was only on the road for a 15-mile stretch.
The ATV went into the ditch and Rielly hit his head on the handlebars, still holding on for 132 feet before falling off the machine.
Brandon Smith said the doctors told them that they did not know if a helmet would have saved their son’s life because of the speed he was going when the crash happened, but he hopes that others take away the importance of always wearing a helmet when using ATVs, motorcycles and similar machines.
“Always wear a helmet, even if it looks stupid,” he said. “You just never know what could happen.”
The teen was flown by Wyoming Life Flight helicopter first to Casper’s Banner Wyoming Medical Center, where it was determined that he needed a second flight to Anschutz Medical Campus Children’s Hospital in Aurora, Colorado.
“We were with him for a week in the ICU hoping that his brain swelling would go down and that he would be OK,” Kazia Smith said. “Unfortunately, we found out five days in that on impact he was gone.”
Brandon Smith said there had been multiple tests on their son at the Colorado hospital, then they got a second opinion from another neurosurgeon who informed them about their son’s true state.
He characterized the medical expertise prior to the second opinion as “not good.”
“The doctors never really told us that on impact he was gone,” Brandon Smith said.
“We were hoping for a miracle that the swelling would go down and that he would come back and be OK,” Kazia Smith added. “But then a second opinion told us ‘absolutely not,’ he was gone in half a second.”
The parents on learning that information decided to take their son off life support July 25.
“It was a nightmare,” Kazia Smith said.
Teen Sets Up GoFundMe
Rielly’s parents said in addition to soccer, their son loved camping, boating, fishing and was a 16-year-old who loved to hang out with his friends.
Rielly’s best friend Owen Knight started a GoFundMe page for the family to help with funeral and expected Life Flight costs. The couple are extremely thankful for the support that has been shown their family during the ordeal.
“He made that for us without us even knowing about it,” Kazia Smith said. “It’s just been a godsend.”
Brandon Smith, who said he works for the state of Wyoming, said he understands his medical insurance probably will not cover the helicopter bills.
He does not yet know what they will be, only that they will be challenging for the family’s finances. Kazia Smith is self-employed.
The couple said they were best friends in high school, had Rielly early in their marriage and believe that it was their son who brought their marriage back together during a really rocky time.
Rielly was joined by his sister, Kinzlee, 7, nine years after his birth.
Brandon Smith said a “celebration” of Rielly’s life and not a “funeral” is planned for 2 p.m. Saturday at Beacon Hill Church in Cheyenne, 3411 Cleveland Ave. It’s open for anyone who wants to come.
“It’s going to be as positive as possible,” Brandon Smith said. “Because he was the most positive person, never negative, never upset.”
“He was the life of the entire room wherever he went,” Kazia Smith added.
Both parents said their son was a teen with faith in Jesus Christ who wore a cross necklace with the verse Philippians 4:13 inscribed on it: “Through Christ who strengthens me, I can do anything.”
“For a 16-year-old boy to have that much faith as he has had is (helping) to keep us strong in our faith as well,” he said. “Even through this horrible situation.”
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.
