A St. Thomas, Ont. teenager whose story captivated the country has died.
“He was in my arms and dad was at his side and he was ready to go,” said Jennah Johnson, Weslee Johnson’s mom.
“He took four very peaceful, deep breaths and then passed.”
We first introduced the audience to Weslee, 17, when his family held a celebration of life in February, knowing he only had weeks to live.
It kicked off a whirlwind couple of months, which included meeting the Toronto Blue Jays in Florida at Spring Training and becoming the first ever honourary cadet with the St. Thomas Police Service (STPS).
“He showed some admiration for the police and I’m returning that that admiration and respect back to him,” said Mark Roskamp, chief of the STPS on March 25, 2026, the day he was recognized.
The outpouring of support has touched Weslee’s family.
“Not in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought that his ninth inning would have been such an exciting adventure,” said Johnson.
However, in the last couple of weeks, Wes’ health started declining rapidly.
“During this entire process, Wes has been aware that he was going to pass away,” said Johnson
“I always made him three promises, and he always had to repeat them back to me. The three promises were ‘You will never be alone, I will never lie to you, and you will not be in pain’. I was able to keep those promises. He didn’t have any pain and, in the end, he was sedated. He chose the day that he wanted to be sedated and he died in my arms [Friday] at 8:40 [a.m.].”
His story captivated people from coast to coast. Thousands donated to his family’s fundraiser to allow him his dying wish to meet the Blue Jays.
“I can’t get through the comments because there’s just so many,” said Johnson.
“The tribute from [Sportnet’s] Jamie Campbell was so beautiful. The St. Thomas police chief posted something about his passing. It was just an incredible way to honour an incredible little boy who touched so many lives. I’m so grateful that I got to be his mom.”
Weslee will be cremated on Monday and picked out a special Blue Jays themed Urn for his ashes.
Born with congenital heart disease, he knew his life would be short.
“He had multiple surgeries and used different medications to try to fix it, but it got to a point where nothing else could be done. We went to Toronto in November of 2022, and were listed for a heart transplant,” said Jennah Johnson, Weslee’s mother.
“We waited just over three years for a heart transplant and now, unfortunately, his other body systems have just been damaged so much from having the broken heart. His body now can’t handle a transplant, so we waited three years for a heart that never came.”
However, in the last couple months he was able to do things he didn’t even realize he wanted to accomplish.
“He had a journey grander in 17 years than a lot of people have in 80.”
His mother hopes her son’s story will encourage people to sign up for organ donation.
“These conversations have to happen,” said Jennah.
“They’re uncomfortable, but we need more organs, period. People need to donate more, and it needs to be talked about more.”
