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Boy ‘died ... having fun with his daddy,’ grandma says

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By Kristin McAllister, Staff Writer Updated 12:27 AM Wednesday, July 8, 2009

The first thing 2-year-old Levi Jones would ask his father each day when he arrived home from work was could they go “four wheelin’,” Levi’s grandmother, Debbie Jones, said in her best imitation of the toddler’s voice.

On Monday, July 6, her son, Ryan Jones, 29, would take his son on what became their last ride together on an ATV.

They were making their way between the family’s crops and dairy cattle farm to a neighboring farm when their ATV hit a large, bulging rock, which threw them off the vehicle.

Although neither was wearing a helmet, Debbie Jones said officials at Children’s Medical Center in Dayton told her that her grandson died from collapsed lungs and that there were no head injuries.

Ryan Jones was treated at Miami Valley Hospital late Monday night and released, she said.

Debbie and her husband, Rodney Jones, said they hope people are not critical of those who ride ATVs and understand that the vehicles are a common form of transportation on large farms.

“It’s part of the farming lifestyle. It’s how we get around,” Rodney Jones said, noting that he uses ATVs to get around on his 1,800-acre, sixth-generation farm.

Riding ATVs with his dad and picking flowers from his grandmother’s garden were two of Levi’s favorite things, the grandparents said.

“He’s my angel boy,” Debbie Jones said. “He died doing what he loved best — having fun with his daddy.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-9338.

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