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Fred’s Story
Site created on October 16, 2019
Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.
We would like to reach out and say a heartfelt thank you for all of the thoughts, prayers, texts following Dad and Electra's tragic accident. We feel the love and support and it is helping the family get through this tragic time. We are heartbroken, lost and devastated. Dad and Electra were on their second trip this season to try to capture pictures of the Aspen tree leaves changing in Pagosa Springs....They absolutely love spending time in Colorado. Unfortunately, there was a suspected gas leak at their home which resulted in a tragic explosion and fire. We can never extend enough gratitude and thanks to the courageous first responders and neighbors that arrived at the scene immediately and saved Dad's life. We will forever be in awe of their courageous efforts, their selfless nature and their genuine desire to help those in needs. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts. As most of you know, despite extreme efforts, precious Electra did not survive the accident.
We are all devastated beyond belief at the loss of sweet Electra. She was such a kind spirit that lived life to the fullest. She was such a huge part of our family and a loving friend to all. She was a bright spot in any room and she never met a stranger. She had a giving heart and was so selfless. All of the grandkids loved "EJ" so much and always enjoyed her cheerful and light spirit. As most of you know she was an avid athlete, she and dad loved to ride their bikes everyday and do just about anything outside. She loved her animals dearly including Leonard, Lowla, and her adopted family of raccoons and foxes at their house on the lake. She and dad were together for 25 years and they were a perfect pair and loved each other beyond belief. She was loved dearly by her family and friends and will be missed terribly.
Dad was airlifted to a burn center in Denver, Colorado which we believe is that absolute best place for him to be right now. He is critically ill but stable right now. The nature of his condition is something that varies day to day, while one day it may be positive the next we may experience expected setbacks. Dad experienced burns over 50% of his body. Amazingly, dad did not suffer any neurological or internal injuries, which is absolutely incredible.....We have told them that dad is not your typical 72 year old which I think is going to help him through this process. He is undergoing the first of many surgeries in this initial week. He remains on the ventilator but you know Dad ,he is breathing over it when given the chance. Due to the extent of his burns, his kidneys took a hit which is not entirely unexpected, however he is on continuous dialysis right now and we expect this is something temporary that can be weaned over the coming weeks. Over the course of this week he has been to the operating room 3 times to begin the long process to help with healing his burns. Each surgery is tough on him and we experience post-operative lows and setbacks each time but he is hanging in there. He remains sedated on Versed with Fentanyl for pain, so he is resting comfortably. We do feel like he can hear our voice based on shaking his head at times or opening his eyes occasionally. He has an excellent team of Doctors and nurses caring for him and we truly feel like he is receiving the best care possible. We are beyond thankful for what they are doing for him.
According to the investigators, this is an absolute miracle that Dad survived the impact and explosion. For all of you that know him and his love for life, you know he is a fighter and that he will come out on the other side with as much strength and will to live as always. Dad has always given so much to others and has such a love for his friends, family, office staff and those in need. He has 5 children who love him more than anything in the world and will be by his side for the duration. We are so proud of him and all of the hurdles he has already overcome. He is our joy and our heart. At this time Dad's recovery process is going to be long, at least 3 months inpatient, and difficult and we would love for you to share stories with us about Electra, Dad, their lives or the impact that either has had on you so we can share these with him. We appreciate the outpouring love and support and please continue with the prayers. They are felt and they are appreciated so much. Sending love and thanks. We will continue to keep you updated.
It is with a heavy heart that we write the final chapter of dad’s story here on earth. After a remarkable 19 months of complete recovery and complete return to his previous state of health we have lost him to his greatest passion, aviation. Our lives were forever changed around 3 PM on May 23rd when dad’s typical weekend routine of flying, biking, boating and later sitting on the porch smoking a cigar and drinking tequila came to an abrupt halt. He took his stunt airplane out for a quick spin and unfortunately had a plane crash over the lake. Although we are unsure of the cause, one thing is for sure, the man took tremendous pride in his aviation and was no doubt one of the most skilled pilots you may ever find yourself in the sky with. In the words of his good friend, he died with his boots on, doing what he loved to do. He excelled near the edge and lived life EXTRA LARGE. We have loved him so hard for the past 19 months, we savored our time and praised every small victory of his and were just amazed by his remarkable progress. He was so proud of himself too. Does it make sense to go through such a traumatic event with the propane explosion with a torturous hospital course to only have 19 months of your life left to live? Not at all… But perhaps we were living on borrowed time and truly learned the importance of really showing our love, admiration and genuine care for him. We didn’t assume he knew… we made sure he knew because we showed him and told him every day and he did the same for us. He was amazed and tremendously proud of his journey and made EVERY single day count. We soaked up that beautiful full faced smile, those big bear hugs, and are so thankful for the time that we had with him. He leaves a big footprint, and we are all so heartbroken. We have attached a copy of his obituary as well as some recent videos from a trauma panel at Swedish Hospital that he filmed. We would love to hear any stories of him from those willing to share. Fly High Foxpop… You will be missed.