Central Minnesota family to build sportsman's club in honor of 2 brothers killed in UTV crash

Two New London, Minnesota, brothers, who died when their UTV collided with a pick-up truck, are being honored in a special way. 

"Will was just larger than life. He had the brightest blue eyes and biggest smile," Lara Dahl said. 

Lara and Mike Dahl said 15-year-old Will and 11-year-old Harry were the most outgoing of their four sons. They were football players, wrestlers and they loved being outside.

"Duck hunting was their absolute favorite. North Dakota was their favorite place to go," Lara said. 

Two winters ago, the Dahls were checking deer stands near their property. Will, Harry and another brother, Drew, asked if they could ride their UTV back to the house. When they didn't return by dinner, Lara began to worry. That's when her phone rang.

"The officer had called and said there was a bad accident, and it was just four miles from here," Lara said. 

Their UTV had collided with a truck. All three boys were flown to Children's Hospital, where Will died. Harry lived a few more days before he passed away, too.

"It was just too much for his little body to handle,"  Lara said while talking about Harry. "Every Sunday morning, before we would go to church, I would do his hair. I would make him close his eyes and I would steal a kiss from him."

As they've been dealing with grief, the Dahls have found a way to honor their sons. They want to build a sportsman's club near New London.

The idea behind it is to give other kids in the area a chance to develop a love for the outdoors, just like Will and Harry did.

The clubhouse would be home to the New London-Spicer trap shooting team, which the boys were a part of. But it would also eventually have archery and be open to families. They want to call it Wild Haven; the "W" in "wild" is for Will and the "H" in "haven" is for Harry. 

"It's just kind of a one-of-a-kind area to do everything," Mike said. 

To raise money, they're holding a fundraiser called the Wild Haven throwdown on May 9 at Smilin' D Arena in Belgrade. There'll be a concert, food, games, and even a sheep scramble and steer wrestling. Mike and Lara said it's exactly the kind of thing their boys would have loved. 

"They were always there to stand up for you," Lara said.

"They had each other's backs really well," Mike added.

The Dahls say their son, Drew, made a full recovery after the accident. Will's organs were donated to several people in need of transplants.