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WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — To keep his legacy alive, a local young man’s family is showcasing his art at the Wichita Falls Museum of Art to honor his life and share his artwork after the tragic accident that took his life.

Wichita Falls native William Heyen passed in late April due to a collision with an SUV on his motorcycle on Southwest Parkway.

Heyen studied graphic design at Abilene Christian University. He was passionate about art and contributed to any type of art, such as music, photography, poetry, painting and drawing.

William participated in his first art show at age eight, and his parents knew from a young age that he had a gift for the arts.

Heyen’s parents, Don and Wynn Heyen, emphasized that they wanted to create this art exhibit to share with the community how talented William was.

“God made him with an inordinate amount of talent and we wanted to do an art show and to do something that would celebrate who God made him to be, and also provide a place for everyone that was coming this weekend to gather and to have a place to grieve together and to take in all of his music and art and, just enjoy being together,” Wynn Heyen said.

Don and Wynn expressed that the exhibit has brought them a lot of enjoyment and ease in seeing their son’s talents.

“It’s provided a lot of joy and a lot of healing for us because we’ve had fun going through his art, going through his writings, listening to his music, some of it we didn’t even know about,” Don Heyen said. “So it’s just been healing for us to celebrate his life and his legacy, his gifts and talents that God gave him.”

The Heyen family is grateful to the community for contributing and supporting them during this difficult time. The showcase will be open until July 1.

Heyen’s family is also holding a memorial on June 28 at 1 p.m. at First United Methodist Church. The family said that anyone is welcome to attend.