‘Their funerals are together’: Best friends killed in car crash while on the way to MLB game

ST. LOUIS (KSDK) – A pair of lifelong friends from Illinois died in a tragic accident while on the way to a Major League Baseball game.

Teagan Kelley and Ashton Jackson, both 20 years old, had shared a special bond since they were both just 4 years old.

“They are 20 years old and they never got off the phone without saying ‘I love you.’ They just had a bond that couldn’t be broken,” Mindy Kelley, Teagan Kelley’s mother, said.

The parents of the two friends are now living out their worst nightmare.

“This is probably one of the worst things a parent can go through,” Sabrina Jackson, the mother of Ashton Jackson, said.

David Kelley said the sudden loss caught all of the parents completely off guard.

“As a parent, you don’t expect this. You can’t prepare for something like this,” he said.

Teagan Kelley and Ashton Johnson were on Highway 15 in Cahokia Heights Saturday night. They were on their way to Busch Stadium in St. Louis to watch a Cardinals game.

Police said Teagan Kelley then crashed into another vehicle before veering off the road and hitting a light pole.

Teagan Kelley died later at a nearby hospital.

“To get the call that your child has been taken to the hospital, and the uncertainty of not knowing what has happened,” Sabrina Jackson said.

Ashton Jackson was flown to a St. Louis hospital where he was put on life support before dying Sunday night.

“Even though the boys aren’t here anymore, they are our family,” Sabrina Jackson said.

Ashton Jackson was a registered organ donor, and his gift has saved two lives.

His parents said being an organ donor was something he always wanted to do.

“One of his kidneys went to a lady out in St. Louis, and another kidney went to a 16-year-old boy in Indiana,” Sabrina Jackson said,

The two were bonded from the beginning of their lives all the way to the end.

“We’re keeping the boys together. Their funerals are together, they passed away together and we’re letting them go out together,” Sabrina Jackson said.

GoFundMe accounts have been set up to help both families of Teagan Kelley and Ashton Jackson cover funeral expenses.