SAND LAKE, Mich. -- A mother in Sand Lake sat with her two young girls Wednesday, recalling memories of their family fishing and playing outdoors with their father, her fiancé. A tragic motorcycle accident this weekend took Jonathon Harden's life.
"He was a phenomenal father," said Shawna Bush, Harden's fiancé of several years, and mother of their children.
Sharing vibrant memories of the young father and her fiancé, Bush treasures the photos of Harden, 25, she took throughout their seven-year relationship. Those memories now eternalized after a deadly motorcycle accident Saturday evening.
"The girls were gone for the weekend, so he was going to go out, practice, and him and his dad were going to go on the bike ride that they had been waiting to go on Sunday," said Bush. "He's wanted it for a long time, he's worked really hard."
Harden just got his motorcycle permit and took his first ride on the bike he recently bought her, Bush says. Riding with his best friend Saturday, Harden took a wide turn on Rogue River Road NE in Plainfield Township, when he veered into the opposite lane and a truck struck him. Despite his helmet, Harden died.
"He was very careful," said Bush. "It was just an accident."
Bush says Harden "lived for us:" he was the father who worked seven days a week landscaping for his family.
Now loved ones are asking for help for Bush and their two daughters, to help continue the dream the couple was moving toward.
"We just wanted to progress, get out of here, get a house for our kids, make our kids’ lives better," said Bush. "He’s going to be missed every day. He was very loved and he knows that."
If you would like to support this family see their GoFundMe page here.
