Koch family gatherings — Christmas, Thanksgiving, all the get-togethers in between — allowed Jonathan Koch to spend time with his beloved nieces, nephews, siblings and cousins.
But the visits to his hometown of Ord also served as an opportunity for the Lincoln man to compete.
The stakes didn't matter to Koch, whom friends and family called Jonny.
"At every event we had, Jonny was very notorious for being the competitive guy," said Misty Goeden, Koch's aunt. "He had to be the winner. And he did not like to lose.
"He had to be the winner of everything in life," she added. "It was awesome to watch him grow into the fine young man he was."
Koch, 22, was one of six Nebraskans killed in an Oct. 2 car crash that local police officials described as "the worst crash in Lincoln in recent memory."
A son, brother, cousin, nephew, uncle and godfather to a niece he adored, Koch left behind more loved ones than his family was fully aware of before he died in the east Lincoln crash.
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"I'm 46 years old,"Â Goeden said, "and my nephew that was 22 probably has more friends and is loved by more people than I would ever dream of."Â
Born Dec. 1, 1999, Koch was raised in Ord and graduated from the town's high school in 2018 before he moved to Lincoln to attend Southeast Community College, from which he graduated last May before entering a career in finance and human resources.
He was passionate about his future, and more than anything, his aunt said, about his family.Â
"Family was everything to him," she said. "I don't ever want anyone to forget how much he loved his mom and his dad and his brothers and sisters."
His family described him as energetic to the point of restlessness, often traveling and, as a teenager, always spending time with his cousins after school in Ord, said Kayden Brown, another cousin who said Koch was like a brother to him.
"Even if you saw Jonny for a split second of your day and he said one thing ... there would always be happy memories," he said.
Koch lived his life to the fullest for nearly 23 years, said his aunt, who is taking solace — however little — in who Koch was with when his life was cut short Sunday.Â
"I didn't want to lose him,"Â she said. "Nobody wanted to lose him. But I guess one comfort we have to take is knowing that he was with the people he loved."