Brett Wiesner's family finds comfort in all of his accomplishments in life: "I'm proud of him on all levels"
Brett Wiesner`s family finds comfort in all of his accomplishments in life: “I`m proud of him on all levels”
Brett Wiesner`s family finds comfort in all of his accomplishments in life: "I`m proud of him on all levels"
MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- 31-year-old Brett Wiesner's death is called an accident and a tragedy. Following 4th of July celebrations the body of a former Milwaukee Wave soccer player was recovered from Oconomowoc Lake on Saturday, July 5th. Now, family and friends are remembering his life.
Wiesner was a state soccer star who played for the U.S. National Indoor Team. His influence was felt most recently as a coach, and certainly as a son.
His pictures and accomplishments are too numerous to fit on the dining room table. A soccer parade all American and state player of the year decorate the room of the 31-year-old.
"Just a great ... a great son ... he'll be missed," says Wiesner's father, Francis. ""I'm proud of him on all levels."
Francis recalls a much happier time when the Brookfield East forward was contacted by college recruiters.
"Washington, Portland, Santa Clara, you name it they were all calling him," says Francis.
The call Wiesner's parents received Saturday, July 5th was much more difficult. Police say Wiesner was with friends on a boat when he went into Oconomowc Lake and didn't resurface.
"My wife has a cancer diagnosis that we've been working with for 3 years ... so we weren't planning on burying our son," says Francis. "We're still in shock, we're not believing that he's gone."
The family desperately misses their son, but finds comfort that he managed to travel and experience the kinds of things some fail to do in a full lifetime.
"When he was 14 he was playing in front of 30,000 people in Bolivia," says Francis. "He played in Brasil, he was in Germany, and he missed his graduation from Brookfield East because he was playing for the U.S. Team in Lisbon, Portugal."
Wiesner played on the U.S. National Indoor Soccer Team and the Seattle Sounders before joining the Milwaukee Wave and taking part in their 2010-2011 championship run. Since then, he's coached and helped others enjoy the game he loves.
Police and the family are calling this an accident. The family is in the process of funeral planning -- for those interested in sharing their condolences, they will share details as plans are made.