Jake Brewer, Obama Staffer and Civic Tech Champion, Dies at 34

Jake Brewer, the 34-year-old White House technology adviser who died this weekend in an accident during a charity bicycle race, was hailed by President Obama on Sunday as one of the brightest young leaders in the civic tech movement.

As word of his passing rippled through technology and policy circles, Brewer was remembered by grieving friends and colleagues as a fiercely intelligent and compassionate person who adored his family and dedicated his life to making government more responsive to citizens.

In a statement, Obama said he was "heartbroken" and described Brewer as "one of the best."

"Armed with a brilliant mind, a big heart, and an insatiable desire to give back, Jake devoted his life to empowering people and making government work better for them," Obama said. "I've often said that today's younger generation is smarter, more determined, and more capable of making a difference than I was as a young man. Jake was proof of that."

Dr. John Holdren, Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, said in a statement that he was "shocked and devastated by the tragic accident that took Jake Brewer from his family and from all of us yesterday."

Brewer, a competitive triathlete, had been riding Saturday in a DC-based charity event to raise money to fight cancer when he lost control of his bike at a sharp curve, crossed the double yellow line, and collided with an oncoming vehicle, according to the Howard County Police Department. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Ride to Conquer Cancer benefit is a two-day, 150-mile ride that raises money for the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, as well as other local hospitals, according to the event's website. Brewer's mother told the Washington Post that her son was participating in the event because a close friend was a cancer patient.

Brewer had only just joined the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy as a senior policy adviser to US Chief Technology Officer, former Google executive Megan Smith, in June of this year, but he had already made a big impact.

"A small sample of Jake's work in just the past two weeks included: leading our participation in an event in the Bronx to help underprivileged young people learn to code; working with our colleagues to accelerate the President's TechHire Initiative; and bringing together leaders from industry and government to use data to connect those with key skills to job opportunities," Smith wrote in a White House blog post.

"He was an awesome addition to the White House family," Smith continued.

In an online tribute, Micah Sifry, co-founder of Personal Democracy Media and New York-based Civic Hall, wrote that Brewer's "real work was community weaving and making vital connections and devoting all of his energy and substantial charisma in the service of what lifted up everyone, especially the least among us."

Watch Brewer's 2014 Personal Democracy Forum keynote: "The Problem with Petitions: Working with Leaders, Not Just at Them"

Prior to joining the White House, Brewer led global policy and external affairs at Change.org, an online organizing platform that allows individuals and organizations to build advocacy campaigns around the world. Brewer was also co-founder and board president of Define American with Jose Antonio Vargas, the prominent journalist and immigration rights activist.

"Indescribable loss," Vargas wrote on Twitter Sunday. "He was the brother I never had. The world was better bc of your life, @JakeBrewer."

Brewer had previously worked at the Sunlight Foundation, a government accountability organization, and helped launch US Ignite, a national initiative building next-generation "gigabit" internet applications in healthcare, education, transportation and other fields, according to his LinkedIn page.

"We're devastated to hear about the loss of @JakeBrewer, a true inspiration for opengov and a great friend," the Sunlight Foundation tweeted Sunday.

A Tennessee native and 2004 graduate of Vanderbilt University, Brewer also served for two years as a cadet at the US Naval Academy, according to Sifry. "Beyond being a mensch, he was also at heart the best kind of American patriot," Sifry wrote.

Brewer had a two-year-old daughter, Georgia, with his wife, prominent journalist and political commentator Mary Katharine Ham, who is expecting their second child.

"I don't have to tell most of you how wonderful he was," Ham wrote in an Instagram post Sunday. "It was self-evident. His life was his testimony, and it was powerful and tender and fierce, with an ever-present twinkle in the eye."

Brewer's friends and family have set up a GoFundMe campaign to establish an educational fund to benefit his children.