OGDEN, Utah — In an instant, life can change forever. But sometimes, when a person shouldn't have survived, an entire community steps in to give them a second chance. That's the remarkable story one Ogden man is telling and we captured the emotional reunion the survivor had with all of those who saved his life.
If there’s anything that Bradon Clark loves, it’s riding his motorcycle. He describes the feeling simply, "just freedom," and "relief relieves my mind of all the stress. Gives me peace."
But in April, Bradon had a devastating accident that would test that love.
While driving down Washington Boulevard, as he's done over and over again, a vehicle turned in front of him.
"I don't have much time to say, do anything, lock up my brakes, or decide what to do,” he recalled.
Bradon was launched into the air without a helmet. Even today, he only remembers seeing white.
“Immediate white, like, white light,” he said, adding, “flew over the car."
Before he landed, Bradon said images of his late brother-in-law and stepson came to him.
"They were just right there. They just, caught, caught me.”
Bradon believes that white light and the feeling of being caught were his two deceased family members acting as angels to cushion his fall. Miraculously, he escaped a head injury, but those weren’t the last guardian angels he would see that day.
The first person to intervene was Austin Jenkins, a volunteer firefighter with the Mountain Green Fire District, who happened to be at the crash site.
“It started with Austin.” Bradon said, “I mean, to be there at the right time, at the right place.”
Austin witnessed the crash, saying, “I watched him fly over the vehicle, and for me to see this actually occur in front of me was like, I gotta do something here.”
Jenkins quickly took action.
“I have a medical bag in my truck," Jenkins said. "I grab that bag out while the wife's on the phone with dispatch. Just having that bag in my truck, [I] knew that I could do something, and it's always better to do something than nothing.”
Austin held Bradon's head stable and treated him until paramedics arrived, providing life-saving care.
As he was being treated, Bradon remembered being conscious and talking with first responders.
“While I was laying there, I remember them talking about which hospital I should go to, and I told them I'd like to go to Ogden Regional,” he said.
Ogden Regional Medical Center is where his wife, Jodi, works in the Operating Room as a surgical scheduler. Jodi wasn’t working the day of the accident, but got a call from someone she worked with to come in as quickly as she could, and the outlook was grim.
“When I got here, they took me in to see Bradon, and it was a horrible scene,” Jodi remembered.
Bradon had suffered severe injuries, including a pelvis fracture, a shattered tibia and fibula, a broken tailbone, and he was bleeding out. Doctors later discovered he was also missing eight inches of leg bone.
Despite the severity of her husband's injuries, Jodi recalled him being reassuring.
"He just kept telling me that I was okay, and that he was okay, and that everything was fine,” she said with a slight chuckle.
Bradon was unconscious for four days and through two surgeries to put his body back together, followed by difficult weeks and months of recovery. Today, he is doing remarkably well, and amazingly, he was able to meet all those who helped save his life.
It was an emotional reunion all the way around.
"To see the whole team that helped save my life in one place. Just speechless,” he said as he wiped tears away.
From Jenkins to the paramedics to the doctors and hospital staff, Bradon said the reunion "meant everything."
The reunion touched everyone, including Ogden Regional Medical Center CEO Jerry Gonzalez.
"To see him walk, it was very emotional, and to see the team come today to celebrate Bradon, it was very, very emotional,” he shared
While Bradon still has a way to go in his recovery, he knows this team will have his back. And as he gets back on the bike again — with his helmet on — riding into the future he’s been given, he has a message for those who saved him.
“To all the people that saved me, I would say thank you. I know for a fact I'm here for a reason. This a second chance. I mean, I shouldn't have made it.”
