Bridget Klug

Most of you know and remember Bridget Klug, Aly's younger (and only) sister. For the past 10 or so years she has been competing as a triathlete and she is world ranked. She was always an amazing athlete. Unfortunately she was in a terrible cycling accident, while training, and is currently in the U of U intensive care hospital. During a training ride, and while not wearing a helmet, her tire hit a groove in the road and she was thrown from her bike onto her head, and the right side of her face. She has brain injuries, but they are not sure yet to what extent. They are continuing with tests. They do seem quite hopeful as her brain is not swelling, retaining fluid, bleeding, or changing; that is good news. Aly is traveling to Utah right now to be with her. I wanted you all to know so that you could keep Bridget, Aly, and Naomi in your thoughts and prayers. And I'll keep you posted. If any of you would like to send good wishes to Aly (which I'm sure she'd appreciate) you can send them to her at:
a k l u g (AT) c o x (DOT) n e t

An Update.

I just got off the phone with Mark and wanted to share an update on Norma with all of you. She is still in the hospital, but had a very, very good night. Mark said that when he arrived this morning she showed enormous signs of improvement. She even said: "I'm hungry, when can I eat." That's a really good sign. She also had previously been retaining water and all of that swelling is now gone. Overall he felt she was doing really really well. Why doesn't everyone leave a comment here for her so that when she arrives home she has an endless stream of well wishes to read. We love you Norma. Heal quickly. And much love to all the family who is there caring for her and Dad at this time. We all so appreciate it.

Fires, Fires, and more Fires.

I've had so many phone calls over the last few days that I wanted to let you all know that we are safe from the fires burning all across California. The closest fire to us is burning in the Santa Monica Mountains above Malibu. Our skies are pink and COMPLETELY SMOKE FILLED all day. We avoid going out if possible. In fact, the entire day looks like Sunrise or Sunset...it's ominous. But, not only is the state on fire, we're burning HOT. Today it was 95 DEGREES in VENICE. Venice hardly ever gets into the 90s. It's Incredibly hot and windy. Just an update. We're well and grateful to be safe and in a home tonight. Certainly our thoughts are with those who are less fortunate.

Tazzie, WE LOVE YOU

On Sunday, July 15th while camping at Bear Lake with Travis (since he is working at the BSA camp for the summer), our dear, very much loved Tazzie passed away. Several months ago, at her physical and vaccinations, the vet said her heart murmur was getting a little worse and that it would be just a matter of time before her sweet heart would give out. (Like a year or two) She gave us some meds, not for a cure, but to prolong her life somewhat and to keep her comfortable and not in pain. The last few weeks, she was looking and acting tired, just not having the 'umph' like she always did. Through out the weekend, she would pant heavily at times and get really hot, but then it would go away. We discussed taking her to the vet when we returned. But early Sunday afternoon, it became apparent she wasn't going to make it. So we all sat around her and Mark said a beautiful prayer that she would go in peace and without pain. Within 30 seconds of the 'amen' she was gone. She did die peacefully and is now running in heaven with Vera and Jake, the schnauzer. We miss her tremendously; those silly dogs - they just become part of your family, but we know she's happy, pain free and playing! We buried her behind the barn, so she could look out over the mountains and the fields that she loved so much. If anybody wants to stop by and see her cute little grave, they are welcome to. Thanks for your support.

Thanks

We just wanted to let the family know that our Grandpa Olsen passed away peacefully last night. We are thankful for the thoughts and prayers from everyone on our behalf. We love you all.

Draper Update

We just wanted to let the family know that our Grandpa Olsen has been sick for a little while and a few days ago suffered a massive stroke. He cannot eat or swallow. He is going to be transported home to Payson tomorrow. If you would, please remember our Grandpa and Grandma Olsen in your prayers. We love you all.

Many Thanks

Thank you for the beautiful plant. We appreciate your thoughts and prayers at this time. We have an awesome family. Thank you Kalyn for delivering the plant, it was very fun to hang out with you.
Love you all,
The Draper Family
PS- Kalyn could do a much better job on this photo! :D

Funeral Services for Rick Hagen

The Hagen Family has arranged to have the service for Rick this friday the 22nd at 3:00 P.M.
They have time arranged from 2:00 to 3:00 for family and friends to visit with the service starting at 3:00. It will be held at Russon Brothers Mortuary on 3rd North and Main St. (right there by Dad's house.) Dave and I are planning to attend and will arrange for a flower arrangement from the Denny Family. Love you all, Mark

Update on Dad [Grandpa]

I thought I would give an update on Dad and the things that are happening with him.
He is out of ICU and now in room 316--the phone # is 299-2316.
He had an angiogram this morning at 8:30 am. The Doctor is Eric Anding. I was quite impressed with him and he answered all our questions.
Dad has some partial blockage in several arteries that are not right at the heart, but he did not have a heart attack. His heart is fairly strong and that was good news. The Doctor thinks the best thing to do is to treat him with medications---he did not think that a bypass was neccessary at this time. He also ruled out stints and angioplasty as the arteries are in an area with a lot of twists and turns and did not think they were a good option.
Dad is doing very well and will probably stay for the day and come home in the morning.
Let's continue to keep him and Norma in our prayers.
We love you, Dad!

We Love You Dad. (And Grandpa.)

Since there are no phones in the ICU and no cell phones allowed either, I thought this was the best way (besides the nurse passing on my message) to pass along this thought: HEAL. We are all praying for your very speedy recovery Dad (and grandpa). Big hugs and kisses to you and Norma both. We love you.

September 11, 2006.

Introduce yourself to a neighbor. Plant a flower. Volunteer your time. Hold hands. Hold the door open for somebody. Write a thank-you note to your mail person. Call someone you love and tell them. Share. Forgive somebody. Give out as many compliments as you can. Listen more. Give a bigger tip. Make eye contact. Invite someone to dinner. Write a letter to the Editor. Understand a different opinion. Forget about yourself. Fly the flag. Call your grandmother. Cook a dinner from a part of the world you know very little about. Tolerate. Attend a rally and just observe both sides. Mow your neighbor’s lawn. Buy someone a coke. (And a scone.) Erase judgement. Forget about politics. Be kind on the freeway. Take somebody flowers. Put yourself in their shoes. Rent a love story. Appreciate another language. Eat lunch in a neighborhood where the residents look different than you do. Put a stamp on a letter upside down. Leave a nice comment on a blog. Donate to a charity. Give hugs. Empathize. Thank your boss, even if you don’t understand them. Bake cookies for your landlord. Eliminate judegement. Take your teacher an apple. Take pictures of something beautiful. Respect everyone. Embrace every religion. Learn a different language. Make up. Thank a sales clerk. Walk instead of drive. Watch children play together. Blow a kiss. Be less opinionated. Wave at the neighbor. Forget your temper. Pay for someone’s train ticket. Take a deep breath. Take another deep breath. Take another deep breath…

A moment of silence is nice, but what comes after?

I just recieved a great reminder of how fragile life is and what we should keep in mind that's really important. I'm posting it in memory of Rick Hagen, almost a brother to me. I'm going to try to attach a link to the short movie clip. if it doesn't work, E-mail me and I'll E-mail it to you.(I know how to do that). http://www.thedashmovie.com/
I love you Rick
Dave

Rick Hagen, Update

As most of you are aware, Rick Hagen (Butch's younger brother and our neighbor growing up in Bountiful) went on a fishing trip up to Vancouver Island, BC, with a friend the 2nd week of July. On the 14th of July, he became very sick on the boat, possibly from a reaction to a sea sickness patch, and got very disoriented and jumped off the boat. He swam to the shore of a small island safely, but refused to get back on the friend's boat. The Coast Guard was called out and they were able to pick him up. Because of his condition (he was hallucinating, confused, and extremely agitated) they decided to take him to a hospital in Port Alberni, BC on Vancouver Island to be examined by the doctor. He was taken to the West Coast General Hospital early in the morning of the 15th. He was seen by a nurse and a doctor and found to be ok and was discharged about 6:30 am that same morning. The Supervisor of the Emergency Room, Margie, talked with him and offered him something to eat before he was discharged. She said he declined and said he would walk downtown and find something. Rick's friend, Paul (the owner of the boat), had damaged the prop on the boat looking for him and as such, did not make it to the hospital until after Rick was released. By then, he was nowhere to be found. Paul searched all over town with the help of the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) with no success. Butch and Donna were notified and they have been working ever since with all the local authorities in Port Alberni to locate Rick. They ran news stories, had pictures posted, even had the local TV station air the story; all with no success.

Now let me fast forward to this week: Dave, Butch and I made arrangements and traveled up to Port Alberni, BC on Tuesday the 29th. Our plan was to continue the search for 3 days and post flyers, talk to everyone involved, and find something that would help with Rick's safe return. We notified the local authorities of our plans and they met with us as soon as we arrived. We posted flyers everywhere you can imagine around Port Alberni and 2 other towns in the area. We met with and distributed flyers to the newspaper, the hospital, the police, the coast guard, the store clerks, the tavern owners, the golf courses, the liquor stores, the hostels, the soup kitchens and everywhere else we could cover while we were there. During the course of our investigation, we found out lots of bits of information that seemed to lead us to the next place to look. The people were very gracious and genuinely concerned and offered assistance to us wherever we went.

When we met with the Police upon arriving in town, a Detective spent 1.5 hours interviewing Butch. He took finger prints and a blood sample for DNA to have on file just in case. During the course of the interview, he told Butch that a body had been found but no positive ID or confirmation of who it was, or even if it was a male or a female. It had been sent to a coroner's office in Vancouver to do forensic pathology work and was not complete yet. Even with this news, we spent the next 2 days searching all the areas and more, as I mentioned above.

As we were driving into the airport in Seattle to catch our flight home on Thursday, I received a phone call from Constable Chris Freed of the RCMP in Port Alberni. He is the Detective that had been on the case. He asked to talk to Butch so we pulled over, as Butch was driving at the time. He told Butch that a positive ID had been made for the body from a fingerprint that they had received from the Davis County Sheriff's office. They found the body on the 21st of August about 15 kilometers out of town in the woods by a recreation area called Sproat Lake. They estimated that it had been there for several weeks but had found no evidence of foul play. Because of the time frame, and the animal activity, it was mostly skeletal remains. They conducted a search with dogs and a search and rescue team of the area as part of the investigation. With him, they found his shoes, a collar of his shirt, a piece of his jeans, a piece of his fishing license, and a piece of his birth certificate. They did not find his back pack, his wallet or any positive ID. As I mentioned, they were able to match one fingerprint in the lab, and received that information on the morning that they called us at the airport. Butch felt it was best to continue home with the news and let his Mother know as soon as possible. He called her and asked her to stay up so we could catch her up on the results of the trip that evening. We stopped at Donna's on the way home from the airport and Butch told her the unfortunate news. Dave and Butch gave Donna a blessing that evening and we stayed and talked with her and her brother, Jerry, who came over as soon as Donna called him.

I apologize to any that feel this is an inappropriate way to share such sad news but felt it was necessary to expedite the information to the family as soon as possible. Rick loved the outdoors and loved to hike and fish. He passed away in one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen doing what he loved to do most. He had an infectious smile and I will always remember him on the golf course at Valley View where he worked for the last 16 years.

I want to express my love to all of you that read this and let you know that it was confirmed to me personally two days ago in the airport that Rick is in the loving care of our Father in Heaven. I know now there is nothing greater in this life that the moment we are greeted back into the loving arms of our Maker where we can find peace.

With love, Mark.

P.S. If you feel inclined to call, Butch's number is 801-544-5059 or cell: 801-699-6300 and Donna's number is 801-295-8909

what's up with the hagens?

I thought I'd put a post on the blog to update everyone about the hagen family. since most of us know them quite well, I thought we'd all like to know that Butch's grandma Hibler, (donna's mom) passed away on the 24th of july. they think her funeral will be this thursday or friday. I am sending some flowers from the denny family and signing everyone's name to it.

next, (i'm giving the readers digest version here) about 2 weeks ago rick went on a fishing trip with a friend up to washington state and canada. while there he became sea sick. when they gave him a sea sickness medicine, he had a reaction and became disoriented and jumped off the boat. they found him on shore and took him to the hospital. a couple houors later he was feeling better and checked himself out before his friend got there to pick him up. that was in victoria, canada, on saturday the 15th of july. he hasn't been seen or heard from yet!! butch has the police in canada and seattle looking and distributing flyers with his picture on it, but nothing yet. butch and I will probably go up as soon as the funeral for grandma hibler is over and see if we can do anything more. please keep them in your prayers.

Remembering Grant.

Today we're remembering Grant Howell and sending out love to his brave parents and darling little sister (whom we can't wait to meet in person). We love you all and wanted you to know you're in our thoughts.

My heart is with you.

Garrett and Jane,

I would just like to let you two know that my heart and thoughts are with you two at this time. This is a difficult time, but Grandma Denny will definitely be taking care of him. He is in good hands. You two have a big family that will do anything to help so just let us know.

We all love you and pray for you.

Love, Aly

Grant Garrett Howell. April 23 to April 26 2005.

Dearest Grant,
I didn't get to hold you. Not even once.
I didn't get to snuggle you before you were gone.
I didn't get to compare my big hand
to your tiny one.
Or see you smile. Or cry. Or wiggle.
But I still loved you my sweet Great Nephew.
Best of all Grant, is that I know
that I will get the chance.
Someday I will hold you, snuggle you,
and hold your
tiny hand. Someday we will smile,
and cry, and wiggle together.
See you then.
In the meantime, you watch
over your good parents.
And we will too.
Because that's what families are for.
I love you Grant, Garrett and Jane.
Rand

Thoughts and prayers to Garrett and Jane

Many, many, many thoughts and prayers.
We love you Garrett and Jane.