High school sweethearts remembered after fatal Blue Springs crash: ‘loved deeply’
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- Aubree and Kody Ballard, both 26, died after a two-vehicle crash in Blue Springs.
- The other car’s occupant was arrested and released pending further investigation.
- Friends and family launched GoFundMe fundraisers and shared tributes and memories.
Friends and family of a young married couple killed in a Blue Springs car crash Thursday remember them as “funny, compassionate and generous.”
Aubree and Kody Ballard, both 26, died from injuries after a two-vehicle crash on Southwest 19th Street and U.S. 40 at 5:20 p.m. Thursday. The driver of Ballard’s car was declared dead after they were brought to a hospital, and the passenger later died from their injuries, police said. Police did not identify who was driving.
The driver of the other car sustained minor injuries, according to police. The person was arrested and was released “pending further investigation,” Lt. Keegan Hughes, a spokesperson for the Blue Springs Police Department, wrote in a Monday email. No charges had been filed as of Monday, he said.
Loved ones of the high school sweethearts created GoFundMe fundraisers to benefit Aubree Ballard’s mother and Kody Ballard’s sister.
Brianna Ingels wrote in one of the fundraisers that the couple recently celebrated their third wedding anniversary.
“They are loved deeply by family, friends, and the surrounding community, known for being funny, compassionate, and generous.”
Photos included in the fundraisers showed the couple posing in matching Christmas pajamas and floating in a pool.
Tributes to Aubree and Kody Ballard
Loved ones shared memories and tributes in Facebook posts.
Kody Ballard’s sister remembered her brother in a post, “Now we can’t tell each other our dumb jokes, pranks, or send each other stupid TikTok’s that only we find funny. You did SO much for me & your niece & nephews. Things will never be the same.”
A friend described Kody Ballard as a funny and giving person: “tree fell during a bad storm..Bam Kody was the first to text me asking if i was okay or if we needed help to clean anything up.”
A friend shared a photo of Aubree Ballard and herself laughing. She wrote of Aubree Ballard, “You truly were a bright light and everything about you was infectious.”
Aubree Ballard’s brother remembered her love of Taylor Swift, “I can’t text her about Taylor getting married. I miss her so much and it’s only been two days.”
He shared that the Ballards were planning to go on a cruise in September.
“They were my best friends and my safety net for anything,” he wrote.
