‘Be as safe as you can’: Vancouver mom warns bikers after son dies from crash

By Drew Marine

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VANCOUVER Washington (KPTV) — Last Friday, Nicole Burch experienced something no parent can ever imagine.

Her son, 24-year-old Levi Adolph-Collin, was biking to work when Washington State Patrol said a driver ran a red light at Northeast 117th Avenue and 71st Street in Vancouver and hit him in the crosswalk. He died at the hospital.

“Society, in general, has probably lost one of the best young men they had,” Burch said.

Burch said he was a loving, generous person before his death and after. She said he’s an organ donor and the hospital has already lined up recipients.

“He was the kind of guy who, if he passed a homeless person and they were hungry or thirsty he would go back to work and get them something to eat and drink,” she said. “Even his last act is he’s gotta make sure he’s taking care of other people.”

Burch said if there’s any way to honor Levi’s life, it’s to protect yourself when you’re on the road.

“I wanna make sure that everybody who rides a bike knows to wear a helmet. Even though it wouldn’t have helped in this situation, just be as safe as you can when you’re on a bike because drivers aren’t necessarily looking out for you,” she said.

She said he worked at Orchards Grocery Outlet for six years and said his work family loved him a lot. The owners wrote a tribute to him on Facebook saying how much they’ll miss him.

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