Support for the Nelms Family

Our family is committed to caring for Chelsey and the legacy of Brad through his children. We are so overwhelmed by and thankful for the outpouring of support that has already been shown and we are looking to continue rally all of those touched by Brad Nelms and his family to tangibly support the wife and children that he loved. It is our hope that these funds would give space for Chelsey to navigate this grief and loss, care for her children and to provide the life for them that she and Brad were working so steadily to build. It has been a gift to know Brad and Chelsey and to witness the love that they shared for each other, their family and their Jesus. To God be the glory.

Words from his wife, Chelsey Nelms:

On December 4th, 2024, our cowboy went to be with Jesus after his plane crashed. Cowboy, superman, mechanic, builder, pilot, drummer, comedian, protector, Jesus lover, son, brother, uncle, dad, husband. There aren’t enough words to describe who this man was. He was larger than life and was gifted beyond belief in so many ways. If you knew him, you loved him. Brad genuinely cared for every person he met. He was so tough, but his heart was so big and so soft. He couldn’t sleep if he thought someone he cared about was hurting and he wouldn’t rest until he knew they were ok. So many people over the years have asked if he ever slept, and the answer is not much. He was always out taking care of his family and the many people that he loved. He didn’t ever miss an opportunity to use what he worked so hard for to bless someone else. His legacy will live on forever in his 4 children that think he hung the moon, Wilder (6), Hesston (4), Hazer (2), and McRae (1). Jesus was so evident in his life. He wasn’t perfect, like none of us are, but his heart was pure gold. While he was here, he experienced God’s mercy, and His love, and His provision. If you knew him in his younger years you knew he was a wild man. But if you knew him now, you would see the same wild man, but He was different. He had a different fire in his eyes and in his heart. He believed in a God that is loving and faithful and He looked to Him everyday in the big and the small. Just this past spring he re-commited his life to Jesus with Wilder, our oldest, in a water trough at our house in front of his family and friends. It doesn’t feel like we had enough time with this precious soul, but he accomplished everything God called him to do. It’s hard to accept for those of us left behind, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t struggling in the today and trying to imagine a life without him, but I’m trusting that God has a purpose that we cannot see and that he will see us through, that is part of the journey. God didn’t promise that life would be easy, but He did promise He would see us through it. We are better for knowing Brad, and having had the blessing of having him in our lives; I know I am. The reach of people he has touched is unfathomably huge. His name wasn’t in lights, he preferred that it wasn’t, but he was known by everyone because of his character. I would never be able to stop if I started telling all the stories of how he helped someone, big or small, close or far. He was a giver and a lover and go-getter. There wasn’t a thing he couldn’t do (besides washing dishes and if you told him it couldn’t be done, you were very quickly shown otherwise. He gave everyone a chance because everyone was somebody to him. Brad’s rodeo always started late because he was usually riding his horse in the parking lot taking care of the people he loved that needed to park close. Our friend said it best, that the only place Brad showed up early was Heaven. He may never have been on time for anything (including his wedding), but He was the rock you called on in any crisis because he was steady, and he was strong, and he didn’t break under pressure. I can say in confidence the first thing Brad did when He got to Heaven was to humbly thank Jesus for His goodness. A day didn’t go by that he wasn’t so grateful, I can attest to that. He will be waiting in Heaven with that big beautiful smile and blue eyes for us to meet him there. He was one of a kind, and I am thankful that so much of him is so evident in his 4 kids so they can carry on his character and his goodness in this hard world. The world is going to need all of them because his character and his heart, this world needs. I am honored God loves me enough that He gave me the time that he did with Brad. I felt so loved by him. We could do anything if we had each other. I will forever carry him in my heart and see his goodness shine through my kids. No matter if he left this earth yesterday or in 30 years, I will never feel like I had enough time with him. That’s the beauty of the person he was. His light will keep shining, even in his absence. God is still good.