From the editor’s desk: Tragedies and silver linings
Published 9:45 am Saturday, July 29, 2023
- Theo Kunselman, 11, operates his drone in the front yard of his Redmond home. Kunselman used the drone to help Search and Rescue locate the body of Bend man who died after falling on North Sister.
Some stories are tough to hear, tough to explain, tough to report.
That’s the case with the tragic death of Joel Tranby, who fell and died while attempting to summit North Sister at the age of 21. It was a gutting loss for his family and the people who cared for him. What added additional pain days later was the fact that Search and Rescue crews had not been able to find Joel’s body.
That’s when the family tasked Theo Kunselman, an 11-year-old from Redmond, to help. And help he did. With a five-person crew, the boy hiked 8 miles in (and 8 miles back) to reach a place where he could send up a drone and search for information. He found clues — a backpack, a water bottle — that enabled Search and Rescue to pinpoint where Tranby had fallen. The next day, they were able to find him and confirm his death.
I was able to speak with Joel’s sister, Hannah, who was devastated by finality of the fact — and that they would not be able to recover his body. But teaming up with Theo and giving their family the solace of knowing that Joel was not suffering meant so much.
For their part, Theo and his father Steve said they felt a surge of duty to do their part to help. Even in the middle of those tough stories, if you look hard enough there can be some beauty. Hannah told me she saw that on her hike back home with Theo in toe — that beauty still exists even in the most difficult of circumstances.
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We send off summer intern Janea Melido, who heads back to the University of Portland to finisher her senior year. Read her farewell column that will appear in Tuesday’s edition and — if you like — compare it to the column she wrote on her arrival. Having your first experience in community journalism definitely impacts the people who do it. Its possible that Janea caught the bug.
Please consider purchasing an annual subscription to the Spokesman, which helps keep journalists like Janea in the industry and readers like you informed about your community. You can get digital access or home print delivery for affordable prices. Call 541-923-1370 or go to redmondspokesman.com and we’ll get you signed up. That’s the best way to support our work and your community.
— Tim Trainor is editor of the Redmond Spokesman.
