SAUGUS, MASS. (WHDH) – Days away from their wedding reception, friends and family of a Saugus couple are heartbroken after the groom was killed and bride was seriously injured in a motorcycle crash over the weekend.
Jessie Edom and Jeff Zajac had already eloped in August, but their wedding reception was this coming Saturday. The two were travelling in New Hampshire to put down the final deposit and finalize plans on Saturday, Nov. 5, when tragedy struck.
Police in Seabrook said the driver of a car was trying to make a left-hand turn into the Brook Casino when it hit the couple’s motorcycle, which was travelling the other way.
Zajac died at the scene, while Edom was rushed to the hospital in serious condition. The car’s driver was uninjured and, as of Monday, charges have not been filed in the crash.
Since the crash, Edom’s family said she has had surgery and is expected to recover as a week of celebration turns into one of mourning.
“I can’t even imagine it,” said Kaila Lane, the daughter of the bride. “She’s in pain all she has is time to just sit there and think about what’s happening. I just wish she could sleep and not think about it. It breaks my heart to think about it.”
The two had previously met and become engaged at the same spot on nearby Hampton Beach in what family called an instant connection. Excited to be with one another, the couple eloped three months ago, and planned to celebrate with a big reception later in the year.
“I mean instant, it was like an instant connection – I think everyone would agree on that, too,” Lane said, adding that her mother could not wait to celebrate her marriage to Zajac. “He was a great guy – I mean, everyone that met him loved him. He was just the sweetest man.”
Friends and family of the bride and groom are now working to support Edom as she recovers, Zajac’s family as they grieve, and also deal with the task of canceling everything planned for Saturday’s reception.
In the meantime, the family has put together a GoFundMe page to help with the Edom’s recovery.
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