Addam Mitchell “Mitch” Wiley, beloved son of Steve and Rita Wiley, went to sleep in the arms of Jesus on 17 December, 2023, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Mitchell was born 6 August, 1997, in Aurora, Colorado. He spent his first two years in Castle Rock, Colorado, where he welcomed a baby sister and childhood partner, Micaela. He and his family (a military family) transferred to Andrews AFB, Maryland, in 2000. It was there that Mitchell and Micaela enjoyed picking blackberries and strawberries, watching AF1 takeoff, airshows, teas with mom, Smithsonian visits, jumping off the couch on dad and a normal pre-school life. After military retirement, Mitchell and his family returned to Firestone, Colorado, after a brief one-year transition through the family farm in Marsland, Nebraska. In Nebraska, Mitchell got to experience a rare one-room schoolhouse on the Niobrara River in Nebraska’s sand hills. It was also there that his love for the outdoors began to take root and flourish.
In Firestone, Mitchell attended Christian schools and graduated from Longmont Christian School in 2016. Upon graduation, he attended Longmont Community College and University of Colorado in Colorado Springs (UCCS). At UCCS, he received his Bachelor’s degree in Economics in 2022. After graduation, Mitchell dabbled in economics but aspired to be a firefighter. He had completed EMT training and was in the application process at the time of his passing.
Mitchell loved the outdoors. He had hiked the majority of the Colorado trail and climbed eight of Colorado’s “14ers”- some more than once. He once texted us from the top of Longs Peak (10 to 18 hour round trip usually begun at 3am). He had begun at 7, accomplished in tennis shoes and was back in town for lunch. Whether he was hiking, camping, playing soccer, kayaking in the San Juan Islands, boogie boarding in the Hawaiian Islands, exploring on the farm or skiing down a quiet Colorado mountain slope, he was most at home and at peace in the outdoors. Mitchell’s passing will leave a hole in the lives of all he touched that will, with the passage of time, become bearable but will never be filled. We all look forward to a joyful reunification heaven.
Mitchell was preceded into the loving care of our Lord by his grandparents, Carolyn and Jerry Wiley of Minden, Louisiana. He is survived by his mother and father, Rita L. and Bryan S. Wiley of Firestone, Colorado; sister, Micaela L. Wiley of Denver, Colorado; brother, Stephan M. Wiley of Aurora, Colorado; grandmother, Merilyn Rainbolt of Scottsbluff, Nebraska; uncle and aunt, Dale and Trisha Schwerer of Mesa, Arizona; aunt and uncle, Kelly and Robert Simmons of Minden, Louisiana; uncle Martin Wiley of Minden, Louisiana and special cousins, Halie Cross of Jacksonville, North Carolina and Hannah Cross of Minden, Louisiana.
A visitation for Addam will be held Wednesday, January 3, 2024 from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM at Olinger Highland Mortuary & Cemetery, 10201 Grant St, Thornton, CO 80229. A funeral service will occur Thursday, January 4, 2024 from 1:00 PM, also at Olinger Highland Mortuary. Mitchell will be interred at the Gardens of Memory Cemetery in Minden, Louisiana.