Muskogee family devastated after man killed in crash on Muskogee Turnpike

A Muskogee family is devastated after a man died in a crash on the Muskogee Turnpike last month.

His family says Baylor Butler was on his way to work in Tulsa with two of his coworkers when the crash happened.

FAMILY MAN

Baylor Butler’s loved ones say he had a big heart and loved his family, especially the two young boys he leaves behind.

”We had so many plans for the future and stuff we were building on, and he just got ripped out of my life, and it’s like everything’s on me now, and you just never think something like this is going to happen to you,” said Brooke Butler, his widow.

Baylor loved rodeoing and hoped his kids would get into it one day too.

He was a family man and adored his two boys, Creed, who is three years old, and Pace, who is five months old.

“It’s kind of sad because Baylor’s going to miss out on that,” said Butler. “Just the things I used to look forward to, like first days of school and holidays, I’m just dreading in a way, without him here with us.”

PEAK OF HIS LIFE

Brooke says Baylor had just celebrated his birthday before the crash.

“He just turned 31 March 15th, so a couple of days before. I always joked that he’s a Grandpa, because he’s four years older than me, and once he hit 30, he thought he was like 70,” said Butler.

Brooke says he was at the peak of his life when he died in the crash.

“It’s just hard to accept the reality of what my life is now,” said Butler. “You just think that he’s going to come home, I still think he’s going to walk through the door, but it’s so permanent, and it’s just really hard to accept the reality of the rest of our life, with our two young babies, doing it all by myself.”

LOVED BY COWORKERS

Brooke says Baylor was headed to work in Tulsa that morning, a place where he was known to make everyone smile.

She says he would go on his lunch breaks and play basketball with his coworkers.

“There’s not one person that I’ve talked to that had anything bad to say about Baylor, and just how good of a guy he was, and just a joy to be around,” said Butler.

CARRYING ON

The boys are what’s helping Brooke wake up in the morning.

“I can’t just lay in bed and be sad and I have to be a good mom for them still, and in a sense their dad too, and I know Baylor would want me to still be the best mom I could be to them, and they’re really my motivation to keep pushing forward and just try to navigate the rest of my life as best as I can without him,” said Butler.

LOVE ALL YOU CAN

Brooke’s message now is to hold your loved ones right.

“It’s hard to be out in public and see a couple or a family that has their husband or wife and I just want to tell them to really don’t take stuff for granted, because you just never know when it’s your time, and there’s nothing you can do about it,” said Butler.

WHAT HAPPENED

Troopers say Butler and Stevie Ray Carter were passengers in a car going westbound on the Muskogee Turnpike when the crash happened.

Troopers say the driver of that car, Johnnie Durosette, was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

Troopers say the driver of the truck was not injured.

OHP says the crash is under investigation.