Tulsa Family Remembers Deacon Danny Brennan After Fatal Bicycle Accident

A Tulsa family is remembering a beloved father, husband and deacon after a bicycle accident claimed his life earlier this week.

Deacon Danny Brennan died Monday while riding his handcycle along a trail near Tulsa—a route his wife says he took nearly every day for years.

Inside their home, family and lifelong friends gathered over the weekend to share memories and prepare for his upcoming funeral. His wife, Julie Brennan, began the gathering with a quiet prayer, echoing the kind of faith-filled presence Danny was known for.

“Every family has to carry a cross. And this was ours for this time,” she said.

Julie believes the crash happened when Danny’s low-riding handcycle clipped a concrete pylon meant to block motorized vehicles from the trail.

“He sits very low. His feet are out front, and he’s doing his hand cycle,” she said. “I think he just grazed the pylon or pole and then hit the left side of his body.”

She says he suffered facial fractures, broken ribs, a pneumothorax and a head injury. The medical examiner is still finalizing the official report.

Danny was a paraplegic, having lost the use of his legs in a car accident as a teenager. But that never slowed him down. He played wheelchair tennis, softball, and basketball.

Danny lived in motion. “He biked that same trail for years. It was his stress relief. His prayer time,” Julie said.

In the days since his passing, family members have found comfort in preparing for a memorial that feels more like a celebration.

“We’re kind of pretending we’re making a party for him,” Julie said with a smile.

His daughter Chloe remembers the laughter—especially when he let her dress him up as a princess. His son Michael fondly recalled building Lego sets together.

Danny’s service will be held Monday at the Church of Saint Benedict in Broken Arrow, where he served as a deacon for more than a decade.