A tragic skiing accident on Christmas Eve has led a family in Wyoming to spend years advocating for slope safety.
Elise Johnson might only be five years old, but she was enjoying skiing with her mother on a short blue run in Casper when another experienced snowboarder traveling at 60mph suddenly collided into them from behind.
Elise was thrown nearly 50 feet and suffered from a fatal neck injury, passing away at the scene.
The snowboarder also passed away from blunt force trauma, while Elise's mom, Kelli Johnson, suffered a serious traumatic brain injury that left her hospitalized in a coma for weeks and requiring months of rehab.
In the years after this, the victim's father struggled deeply with grief, and he later described turning to alcohol before finding his support in faith and loved ones.
His daughter eventually made a remarkable journey, regaining basic functions like speaking and swallowing. Now, the family has founded a Snow Angel Foundation, which is a non-profit that promotes safety awareness among skiers.