A few weeks before Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau were killed in a bicycle accident on August 29, their sister Katie celebrated her wedding on the eve of her own wedding, where the brothers were to be best men.
On July 22, Katie posted photos of the celebration on Instagram, captioning the post, “Thank you to my mom, bridesmaids, bridesmaids, and mother-in-law for the wedding night of my dreams. 💗🧡🤍.”
In the pictures, Katie posed with family and friends surrounded by orange, white and pink balloons. She was set to marry fiancé Devin Joyce on Friday, Aug. 30, but reportedly called off the wedding following the death of her brothers the night before the wedding, according to TMZ.
PEOPLE previously confirmed that on Thursday, August 29, the Columbus Blue Jackets hockey player, 31, and Matthew, 29, were killed in a bicycle accident in Oldmans Township near Salem County, NJ, after Katie’s rehearsal dinner ahead of her wedding.
Brothers Matthew and Johnny Gaudreau in 2014.
Richard T Gagnon/Getty
The brothers were riding their bikes on Country Route 551 North just after 8 p.m. when a suspected drunken driver tried to pass another car and fatally struck Johnny and Matthew, New Jersey State Police told PEOPLE. The driver, Sean M. Higgins, was charged with two counts of death by auto and arrested, and the investigation is ongoing.
Higgins, who was joined by an attorney from the public defender’s office, made his first appearance before a Salem District Court judge on Friday.
“Through further investigation, Higgins was suspected of being under the influence of alcohol, charged with two counts of death by auto, and booked into the Salem County Correctional Facility,” New Jersey State Police said in a statement. “This accident remains an active investigation and no additional information is available.”
Higgins’ detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday, September 5.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
The Blue Jackets paid tribute to Johnny and Matthew in a statement shared on X on Friday. “We will miss him terribly and will do everything we can to support his family and each other through this tragedy,” the post read. “At this time, we ask for prayers for the Gaudreau family and that their privacy be respected as they grieve.”
Johnny’s widow, Meredith, posted two tributes on Instagram to her late husband, father to daughter Noah, who turns 2 in October, and son Johnny, 7 months.
“Thank you for the best years of my life. Despite losing you, I’m still the luckiest girl in the world to have been yours. I love you so much,” she wrote in one post. In another Instagram post, she called him “the absolute best dad in the world.”
Matthew is survived by his wife Madeline, who is pregnant with their first child.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education