‘Wanted a brighter future for their kids:’ Friends remember couple killed in US 2 crash
Feb 27, 2026, 5:32 AM
(Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
(Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
Loved ones are remembering a husband and wife killed in a fiery crash near Gold Bar two weeks ago while on their way to a Valentine’s Day ski trip.
James Khezri and Elham Javadi were killed in a head-on crash on State Route 2 on February 12, heading to Stevens Pass for a couple’s ski weekend. Friends tell KIRO 7 the two had been together since they were teenagers and immigrated from Iran with their kids to build a life in Washington.
Both were doctors who touched countless lives across the Seattle area. Dr. Khezri worked at Allure Esthetic in Kirkland, and Dr. Javadi was a periodontics practitioner in Edmond.
“The other couples didn’t know what had happened,” said Dr. Javad Sajan, a close friend and coworker. “So they were in traffic, sitting, waiting, then they started calling Dr. Khezri. They couldn’t get ahold of him.”
Two weeks later, their deaths are still hard to process.
“We couldn’t understand it. We couldn’t fathom it. We didn’t believe it,” Sajan said.
Dr. Sajan worked alongside Dr. Khezri daily.
Friends describe the couple as smart, adventurous, and deeply caring both inside and outside of work. Above all, they say, the two were devoted to their sons.
“Just a person full of life, full of energy,” Sajan said. “He was the kind of guy who always wanted to do more and be more for others.”
He describes Dr. Javadi as equally warm. “Really kind, giving person, very sweet,” he said.
Together, the two dedicated their lives to helping people. Above all, they were devoted to their boys.
“Very loving people, very kind,” said Dr. Sajan. “They did everything they could for their children. They came to America, leaving a very difficult situation, but also leaving behind all their family and friends because they wanted a brighter future for their kids and they wanted their children to have opportunity.”
Their two sons are now left without parents and without any other family nearby in the United States.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the boys, if you’d like to help.
