My friend just died in a fire...

[dealgrabber2002]

It's never easy hearing or reading someone died in a fire let alone a friend. So sorry for your loss.

 

[kaichu dento]

Not aimless at all. Clearly the local elected officials are incompetent morons.

Unfortunately there are no elected officials, as Chena Hot Springs is a privately owned resort. In actuality it more resembles a kingship where the owner simply does what he wants to, and doesn't give any consideration to anything that is not interesting to him. He routinely ignores advice of those who have worked for him for years, but will follow the whim of brand new employees in ways that are incomprehensible.
After the fire in the hangar a couple years ago, while I was still soaked through and through with my face all covered with soot, he walked by and said "I appreciate what you did today" and that was it.
At least from the brush fire we got little coupons for $20 in the restaurant...

I'm sorry to hear about your friend.

Try not to dwell on the what could have beens and the if onlies, and remember the good memories. Even remember that had you met him at the "wrong time" you'd never have liked him, and that you were lucky that you met him when you did.

I'm very glad to have known Kevin and like so many times before I will always feel regret that it had to be one of the people that always cheered people up to be lost so soon. Only in his 20's, already gone.

 

[saabgoblin]

So sorry to hear and the fact that you are reminding us to communicate often and openly with the ones that we love, speaks volumes about your character.

Take Care Kaicho.

 

[Monocrom]

Wow! Even worse than I thought!

Hopefully someone will soon sue him into a cardboard box. Some folks only care about money. Also, every now & then I like to indulge. But I will be sure to avoid that private kingdom. Thanks for the heads-up.

 

[kelmo]

He is lucky to call you friend. Don't let anger cloud his cherished memory. Good friends are hard to find. The truely special you will carry with you always, no matter what. I can still see the loved ones I have lost. Hear their voices. Smell their scent like it was yesterday.

Be strong my friend.

kelmo

 

[kaichu dento]

Wow! Even worse than I thought!

Hopefully someone will soon sue him into a cardboard box. Some folks only care about money. Also, every now & then I like to indulge. But I will be sure to avoid that private kingdom. Thanks for the heads-up.

The other side of this complex coin is that it's such a must-visit spot, with the hot springs rock lake, the ice museum and location at the end of the road.

If you're coming to Alaska I would definitely suggest going there for the ice museum and hot springs, but staying somewhere closer to town, or maybe even getting a cabin just six miles down the road at Angel Creek Lodge.

The thing with the owner, is that money matters a lot to him, but not as much as playing king. As a result he makes lots of penny-smart/dollar-dumb decisions.

 

[Monocrom]

Excellent advice. I truly appreciate it. Thank You.

 

[bbyupikgal]

Kevin was a good friend of ours, we live out here in Dillingham. I was able to visit Kevin at the Springs three times in the last 6 months and he was the hostest with the mostest! This has come as one of the most unbelievable tragedies... a life so alive and so young. I have a few pictures of him on my FB and would be more than willing to let you have them. E-mail me at [email protected]
The world is less of a place without Kevin's smiling face and endless outdoor adventures. As you well know, he was the 'give-the-shirt-off-your-back' type of guy and words can't even do justice to the hole he's leaving behind. As a friend of Kevin's, I grieve with you.

 

[kaichu dento]

Kevin was a good friend of ours, we live out here in Dillingham. I was able to visit Kevin at the Springs three times in the last 6 months and he was the hostest with the mostest! This has come as one of the most unbelievable tragedies... a life so alive and so young. I have a few pictures of him on my FB and would be more than willing to let you have them. E-mail me...
The world is less of a place without Kevin's smiling face and endless outdoor adventures. As you well know, he was the 'give-the-shirt-off-your-back' type of guy and words can't even do justice to the hole he's leaving behind. As a friend of Kevin's, I grieve with you.

Give you shirt off your back, heck I sold him a Benchmade Nimravus knife for $100 because he liked it so much. He went on and on about how it was just the perfect knife for him.

Then just a week after he paid me for it he asked if I had another one because his brother in law really liked it, so he gave it to him! People like him really help make the world go round...

 

[Patriot]

Just saw this and I'm very sorry for the loss of your friend. :shakehead

I pray that his family and friends pull close together as you mourn his death.

 

[kaichu dento]

I talked to the musher at the hot springs for a while last night and she said kind of the same thing that I've been feeling; lots of numbness and incredulity that he's actually gone.

She's in one of the cabins too so she was there right away and said that no one even considered he could be inside. They all assumed that since his new little dog was running around outside that he'd gone off after the fire started and fallen asleep in the bushes somewhere.

She had just been talking about getting a file for her chainsaw and Kevin bought her one, then seemed really disappointed that she'd already bought one herself. That's our musher, the dark haired one in the picture of us all laughing.

I didn't even cry once since hearing about this until the other night as I was loading some of the pictures up. I suspect that at some point I'm going to have a hard cry and I wish that he'd had a favorite song I did so that I could dedicate it to him whenever I'm singing...

I got an e-mail last night that they're going to have a big farewell for him in Dillingham.