Adam Marc Hayden, beloved husband, father, son, brother, friend, and advocate, passed away peacefully at home in Greenwood, Indiana on December 20, 2025, at the of age 43.

Without any question, his greatest joy and pride in life was the endless love and dedication he had for his wife, Whitney, and their three precious boys, Isaac, Noah, and Gideon. He found great fulfillment and wholeness with them.

In addition to his wife and children, he is also survived by his parents, Marc and Julie Hayden; sister, Ashley Hayden; brother and sister-in-law, Austin and Colleen Hayden and nephew, Graham Hayden; brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Chad Roehling and Elizabeth Kolter and nephews, Ryne and Reece Roehling, and his parents-in-laws Steve and Teresa Helming, as well as numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Adam was born on April 22, 1982 in Greencastle, Indiana and spent most of his childhood in Scottsdale, Arizona before returning to Indiana as a teenager. From a young age, Adam demonstrated a love of learning, a tender heart, and a sharp sense of humor.

After high school, Adam studied at IU Bloomington before beginning his professional career in management and training at Starbucks, where he worked through his twenties.

Adam and Whitney got married in 2010. Their family grew to include Isaac, Noah, and Gideon over the following years. Balancing family life, work, and Whitney’s career, Adam returned to school, earning a Master’s in Philosophy from IU Indy, where a scholarship for philosophy students continues in his name.

While in school, Adam made a mark as a bartender in Indy’s emerging craft cocktail scene, including coordinating the effort to open and manage BarRev in Greenwood. Adam’s call in life was connecting with people through education. He set aside his plan to pursue a PhD and become a professor to prioritize his responsibility to his family.

Adam spent the last ten years of his professional life in a myriad of positions at Briljent, a training and development company headquartered in Indiana.

On May 13, 2016 after years of undiagnosed absent focal seizures, an emergency MRI revealed a baseball-sized tumor in Adam’s brain. In quick order, over 95% of the tumor was resected in an awake surgery, allowing Adam to make a real-time decision to leave some tumor behind in exchange for the functional ability to play with his kids. In June 2016, a biopsy confirmed everyone’s fear: Glioblastoma (GBM), an aggressive and incurable brain cancer.

Remarkably, Adam spent little time being shocked by his diagnosis, which allowed him to dive into the world of advocacy quickly and effectively. He attributed this to his upbringing as a pastor’s kid and having a sibling with developmental disabilities. A hallmark component of his advocacy work was engaging the medical community to shed insight into the realities of the disease through activities including writing, speaking, teaching, publishing, and countless hours serving as a research advocate. His most prominent writing includes his blog Glioblastology, a journal of parenting, patient advocacy, philosophy, and life with terminal illness.

In addition, Adam was a board member at the National Brain Tumor Society, co-founder and leader for an online support group, hosted A&W Tumor Takedown Tailgate fundraisers with Whitney, and volunteered at multiple advocacy events like Head to the Hill in Washington, D.C. Adam pulled from a deep well of personal experience while ensuring a variety of voices from the brain tumor community were also represented. As a prominent member of the brain tumor community, Adam was awarded the Jan Esenwein Public Service Award in Neuro-Oncology in 2022 from the Society for Neuro Oncology, and in 2023 served as a National Cancer Institute Visiting Scholar Lecturer.

Alongside his deep commitment to medical advocacy, Adam was a founding co-chair of the Anti-Racism Taskforce of the Indiana-Kentucky Conference of the United Church of Christ, a progressive Christian denomination with a commitment to social justice, peace, and interfaith collegiality.

He led with humility, gentleness, and courage all while adding a bit of punk rock spirit to all he did. His life and his legacy, expressed through words and through the hearts of others, will have an unending impact on the world. His memory lives on through countless friends, colleagues, and brain tumor advocates.

Per Adam’s wishes, a private memorial gathering and private celebration of life will be held on January 31st and February 1st.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to support the Hayden children at the following memorial website https://everloved.com/life-of… and to the National Brain Tumor Society https://nbtsevents.braintumor… in his memory.

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