Last night the phone rang at 10:15. This obviously caused me to jump as people know we are not night owls and never really call us after 9pm. I got a call from my best friend Kristi. Her older brother Ryan was killed in a small plane crash. Ryan was 34. I really don't know many more details at this point except that the man who he was flying with (who I know only by name) was also killed.
I really didn't sleep much at all last night after this call. This is a town of 200 so not only does this impact the family but everyone that lives there. If you think of it please pray for Ryan's wife -- Melissa, and her young son Payson (who is about 6). Please pray for his parents Ray and Doris. And for his four sisters: Kristi, Linnie, Tandra and Amy. Kristi was on the way to the ranch when she called which was infamous for bad service, and needless to say, Kristi wasn't speaking very clearly either.
I really don't know what else to say. This has been a tough few years for the Hartley's with a variety of frustrations and illnesses and they just need the arms of the Lord right now. He's the only one that can possibly bring comfort to this situation.
I love you Hartleys.
6 comments:
Oh wen! my heart goes out to Kristi and her family. They are in my prayers this morning. She has been thru so much. You are right. We need to bring her/them to Him in prayer. I know it is hard for you to be far from your best friend in this so i am praying for you too.xo Jan
We're so sorry for Kristi and her family and we'll be praying for them.
My heart and prayers go out to Kristi and her sweet family. I can't even imagine...that is so very tragic. Hope HE wraps her in his arms today and in the coming days and months. Hugs, Kel
Oh my, how very tragic! Our prayers will be with the Hartley family, with Kristi and little Payson and Mom, Melissa! The Lord will lift them up and give them strength in these very difficult times! And for you too Wen, this must be so very hard for you, to be so far away! Love Nancy and Tom
We're praying too! For you guys, also...
Hi, Wendi,
You may remember me from Kristi's wedding; I am Kristi's Aunt Carolyn. I remember you well and know that the wedding could not have taken place without you. Kristi and Doris talk about you all the time.
I appreciated your words about the Hartley family. This has been so tragic. Doris called me (we live in Raton now about 80 miles from Doris) and told me that Ryan and Jeff Bell had left about 9:30 in the morning and no one had heard from them. Neither would answer their cell phones. They were flying over a part of Jeff's ranch and looking for a place to make trails. I sensed the anxiety in Doris's voice and ran outside to find Jack at the barn unloading hay. He called our friend, Keith Manglesdorf, at the local airport and my brother Kenny met Jack and Keith at the local airport and left in Keith's Cessna Sky Wagon immediately. Jack has a Bellanca that would have been too fast to search below, and a Aircam that was designed to fly for National Geographic, but it was too slow and would have taken too long to get to the ranch. They landed at the Bell Ranch and picked up Ray (Ryan's father) since he knew where Jeff and Ryan might be flying. They searched for over an hour, and found the wreckage of the yellow Savage plane at 5:55. They landed and Ray and Doris took a vehicle to the site while Keith, Jack and Kenny circled the downed plane. They saw the vehicles approaching, and then for the first time saw a tall thin person running toward the cars on the ground. They flew back to Raton.
When Jack landed, he said, "Carolyn, I think we saw Ryan running. He might have been looking for water for Jeff." We gratefully thanked God, but before Jack made it up the mountain, Doris called telling me that Jeff and Ryan were both dead. The person they saw running was someone from the Bell Ranch who had come in when they saw the plane circling to mark the site. The plane probably stalled and went in nose first. The amazing thing was that the plane did not burn, and Jeff and Ryan were still seat belted in. Doris said that Ryan looked just like Ryan (that is a huge blessing). Melissa was right behind them.
Doris had not notified the girls until after they found Ryan. I know it was a huge shock to them.
For anyone who does not know Ryan, it is hard to describe what a wonderful kid he was. My military husband admired him greatly. He was the kid who took care of so many people. He would check on his grandmother while she slept and would never tell her that he did. He took care of his mother during her five year bout with colon cancer that matacized to her liver (Doris is cancer free now). He was a wonderful father to Pacen. Pacen said that his first day in first grade was not a good one, because that was the day his Daddy died.
Kristi, Tandra, Lenni, and Amy are still at the ranch. I know that is a great comfort to Doris, and having Melissa and Pacen there is a comfort, too. Kristi's precious daughters, Logan and Raylee and Tandra's son, Jackson are there, too. The Hartley family will survive because they are strong.
If anyone would like to send a card to the Hartley Ranch, the address is
Doris, Ray, Melissa, and Pacen
50 Guest Ranch
Roy, NM 87743
And, Wendi, I can relate to your life. Our married life started out in Milton, FL, very close to Pensacola. As a military life, we had 15 addresses in five years. Jack was a carrier pilot in Vietnam, and spent one year on a Med Cruise. I believe that if you can survive being a military wife, you can survive anything. I, too, desperately wanted to get pregnant, and when I went to work and tried to forget about it, I got pregnant. I wish you the best of luck with your adoption and know that you will make wonderful parents. I will include you in my prayers.
When you get out to New Mexico, you are invited to our "Zoo". At Medicare age, I am reaching some of my dreams. We have 8 llamas (two babies), 12 pygmy goats(5 babies), a horse, 2 emus, 2 peacocks, 10 ducks and 4 geese on the pond, with 16 ducks that are being introduced to the pond today. We also have a 11 month old Great Pyrnees, Buddy, and a new baby Great Pyrnees, BeBe, who will be Buddy's bride in the future. And we have one cat, Boots.
I could not get Logan to come to me, but she and Pacen were out jumping on the trampoline, and I said "Pacen, I need to talk to you". I said "Your Mommy said you can come up to the mountain tomorrow and visit the animals". As I started to list the various animals, Logan ran over to me and jumped in my arms, and said,"I am going, too". She jumped down and began putting her shoes on. She did get to come to the mountain the next day, and visited the animals. We had a fun time while her Mom was helping make the arrangements.
One sad note for me was that I was not able to attend the services. I had an appointment at National Jewish Hospital in Denver (it took months to get it) and spent the week up there. I am having breathing problems, but after a full week of tests, we have zeroed in on the cause and I will have surgery in two weeks. In the meantime, I plan to visit the ranch when I can.
Our prayers are with you, Wendi.
Carolyn Woodul
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