It's gonna be a long night........

[Tiki-Tom]

Hello Army friends................... Looks as if Sparkie and I have a pretty horrible night ahead of us. A dear friend of ours who happens to be the uncle of our child is lost at sea.
He went fishin' with his brother, the boat lost power and started taking on water around 6;30pm. He called Sparkie and asked her to call the Coast Guard and as of this post, not a sign of them......The water is rough as hell with this ex hurricane passing by and things don't look to great. The Guard and the Sheriff have a few boats out looking and also a copter but they are almost ready to give up till daybreak.................

The worst thing is that he has a little girl (who is more like Sparkie Jr's sister and best friend than cousin) who stays with us quite a bit. Both the kids are sleeping now and, though they know why we are so upset right now, they have no idea who we're so worried about.

We need a miracle here, guys. The best way to get one is by praying. I know there are some of you who don't pray, and that's okay. Just keep us in your thoughts, PLEASE.


Dan and Bill, I know you dont hear me right now but I'm gonna say it anyhow. Please, hang in there....................

[thome]

I'm here for you and yours as best i can be.

[Dan]

My Thoughts Are With You And Sparkie.Hope They Find Him Alive.

[Tiki-Tom]

Originally posted by thome
I'm here for you and yours as best i can be.



Originally posted by Dan
My Thoughts Are With You And Sparkie.Hope They Find Him Alive.

Thanx guys, just wishin' for a miracle right now. Those kind words mean a lot.

[franksters]

I will try to send you as much Positive energy as possible.

Miracles happens at roth army...

[Dan]

Originally posted by franksters

Miracles happens at roth army...

Amen To That.

[Nitro Express]

If their boat went down off of the Carolinas as least they are in warmer waters. Hopefully they have an inflatable dingy to use as a lifeboat. Those Zodiac boats can take a real beating. Hang in there. Trying to find a small boat in a stormy ocean is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Hopefully they will find them in the morning.

People have ridden it out in the ocean for sevral days and survived the ordeal. The main thing to worry about is hypothermia right now. In northern waters it would be a very bad situation but farther down in the warmer water they can make it throught the night ok.

[SparkieD]

Thanks for all the good vibes. What a fucking night! It's hard to sleep when someone important to you is floating in the dark, murky ocean.

Inflatable dinghy? Shit, they were in a 17' bass boat, not much bigger than a dinghy itself. There was even speculation about the presence of life jackets. Thankfully, there were. These guys were crazy. Who the hell goes "canoeing" in rough seas like that?

Anyway, Bill was rescued about an hour ago. He's alive. They still haven't found Dan. I don't know any further details, but someone from the Coast Guard is supposed to be calling me shortly.

They've got to find him. His kid absolutely adores him. She has such a hard time since her mom (my sister) and her daddy aren't together anymore. She will be a mess if they don't find him alive. Plus, he has a baby on the way.

[VanHalener]

Your family is in our prayers.

[Anonymous]

I'm not very good at support words thingy, since I never get them.

Note that I'm not saying it in a bitter way. I just don't get them 'cuz I never ask for them. I just like to keep my problems for myself, most of the time.

But I do feel for others.

And so, I'll keep it simple. I really hope everything turns out well.

When Bill last saw Dan was he still alive?

Here's hoping for the best...

Cheers! :bottle:

[SparkieD]

We usually keep our problems to ourselves, too, but this one is a life or death situation with the well-being of a very important little girl at stake on top of it. We can use all the prayers and good vibes possible. Thanks for all of yours, friends.

I don't know anything further. Don't have a clue about the last time Bill saw his little brother. I don't even know if there was more than one life vest. I am certain the boat sank. Beyond that, all I know is that there are more boats and helicopters out searching.

[blonddgirl777]

Originally posted by SparkieD
... They've got to find him. His kid absolutely adores him. She has such a hard time since her mom (my sister) and her daddy aren't together anymore. She will be a mess if they don't find him alive. Plus, he has a baby on the way.

Life cannot be that cruel!
They will find him... they HAVE TO!

He's got all the reasons in the world to hang on and I'm sending my positive thoughts for him to continue to do so...

Saturday, 11;00 AM... we should be hearing from him soon...

[Diamondjimi]

Hope everything turns out ok for you guys. I'm not a religious person and I don't pray , but I'll be thinking about y'all and your lost one and hoping for the best.

Peace!

[Anonymous]

Originally posted by SparkieD
We usually keep our problems to ourselves, too, but this one is a life or death situation with the well-being of a very important little girl at stake on top of it. We can use all the prayers and good vibes possible. Thanks for all of yours, friends.

Oh, and I was just stating the "keeping my problems to myself" matter-of-factly, I didn't mean anything by it. Like I said, I do feel for others. Especially in a situation where there's a child involved.

I really, really hope everything turns out well.

Cheers! :bottle:

[SparkieD]

Originally posted by Imapus Sylicker
Oh, and I was just stating the "keeping my problems to myself" matter-of-factly, I didn't mean anything by it. Like I said, I do feel for others. Especially in a situation where there's a child involved.

I really, really hope everything turns out well.

Cheers! :bottle:

Oh, I know:) We never took it badly.

Thanks again, everybody.

Not much news to tell except that we've informed the kids just who we're upset about. It was NOT a pretty situation, but we couldn't justify lying any longer.

Dan's wearing all blue so he's hard to spot. Coast Guard said if they can manage to find him before dark, he has a good chance. However, if they don't find him by then, his chances are not good, not good at all.

[diamondsgirl]

I am praying for Dan and that thru God's grace, he will be found alive. Also for his daughter, God has provided her with the best extended family a girl could have. I believe He puts people in places for a reason.

We are all right where God wants us to be, hard to believe and tough to swallow at times. But, I do believe its true.

God bless all involved! Let me know if there's anything I can do.

[Ally_Kat]

Definately got my prayers.

I can't express what I feel for the poor kid :(

[FORD]

Just now seeing this thread for the first time, but I'm praying that it turns out well with Dan.

[DlocRoth]

Aw Jesus......that's fucking terrible....

Best of luck.....

The Dlocs will be thinking about you......

[chi-town324]

stay strong and positive if you can....thoughts and prayers are with Dan

[binnie]

This is terrible news.

My thoughts are with you both and I hope all works out well.

God bless.

[jgdrag]

Hope for all the best, keep us posted

[DirtyDeeds]

I'll go pray right now.

I'm just reading it now. This gave me a very sick feeling. Hang in there, y'all.

[Douglas T.]

Praying for strength to you and yours in these rough times.

[smaz]

Best wishes to all!

[SparkieD]

Hey everybody. Thanks for all the prayers and well wishes. You have no idea how much they all mean to us.

Tonight has been worse than last night. We just got home from meeting with the Coast Guard Captain and Chaplain, as well as the minister from my daddy's church. They have suspended the search and rescue mission. Tomorrow, the Department of Natural Resources will resume as a recovery mission. There were over a dozen vessels and aircraft combing over 700 square miles of seas to no avail.

I have hoped and prayed, wished, begged and pleaded so hard for the past couple of days, and I can't lie. My faith has been shaken. I believe in miracles, always have. I see them every day in things we all take for granted. Never in my life have I asked for one until now. I can't seem to shift from asking for that to asking for the strength to deal with this. I hurt so much. I hurt for Dan. I hurt for his daughter, my daughter, my sister, and even his new girlfriend and their unborn baby. Damnit, I hurt for me, too. He was my kid brother. How do you eat a meal or lie down in your warm bed when someone you love is alone out in the dark, cold sea?

Sorry for the rant. I want so badly to just scream, but I can't so I let some of it out here.

[DeadOrAlive]

Man, it's all in my prayers. I hope for the best.

Being lost in sea used to be one of my worst nightmares as a young kid. I can only imagine.

I'll pray and keep it in my thoughts. Something will come through.

[blonddgirl777]

Originally posted by SparkieD
... I have hoped and prayed, wished, begged and pleaded so hard for the past couple of days, and I can't lie. My faith has been shaken. I believe in miracles, always have. I see them every day in things we all take for granted. Never in my life have I asked for one until now. I can't seem to shift from asking for that to asking for the strength to deal with this. I hurt so much. I hurt for Dan. I hurt for his daughter, my daughter, my sister, and even his new girlfriend and their unborn baby. Damnit, I hurt for me, too. He was my kid brother. How do you eat a meal or lie down in your warm bed when someone you love is alone out in the dark, cold sea?

Sorry for the rant. I want so badly to just scream, but I can't so I let some of it out here.

Ho Dear,

How to tell you, I am terribly sorry to hear that. It is 4:00 AM here and I was thinking about Dan and what must be going on in his mind...

Yes, it is not easy to keep faith in times like these. I have a very hard time with it myself so I admire those who can turn to prayers for true confort and peace of mind.

That's what you will need; faith, love of your family, courrage and strenght. And I wish all of if it to you and Tiki.

Hey, if I could be the shoulder you can lean on to cry, I would be!
Hold on and take care of yourselves!

[DirtyDeeds]

I won't give up praying for Dan. I told some other people about this, too, so they could pray as well. Hang in there. Have faith it will be alright.

[rocknrolldork]

Oh man that's terrible news. You and your family are in my prayers. Sending positive thoughts your way.

[diamondsgirl]

I am so sorry, Sparkie and Tom. The upcomming days and weeks are going to be tough, I am praying that you and your family find peace.

I know what its like to wish you could just wake up and it was all just a nightmare. That heartwrenching, gut wrenching pain when you lose someone you love...

Please take care of eachother.

[Hardrock69]

I just now read this.

This sucks.

Sorry to hear of this.

I only hope some kind of miracle can happen.

This is one reason I am a landlubber. Never been interested in going out on the ocean for any reason.

My prayers are with you and yours.
:(

[Nitro Express]

If they had the propper life vests, their chances of rescue would be pretty good especially if they had strobes or beacon locators.

If they didn't have anything to keep them afloat it's not a good situation at all. I refused to go fishing in Mexico because the boat had no safety equipment at all.

It's a sad situation; there's still a chance of them being found. A Marine went overboard off an aircraft carrier and he stayed afloat by inflating his pants like how they show you to do at Scout camp. He was found by a fishing boat.

All you can do right now is hope for the best so my prayers are with you!

[Tiki-Tom]

Originally posted by Nitro Express
If they had the propper life vests, their chances of rescue would be pretty good especially if they had strobes or beacon locators.

If they didn't have anything to keep them afloat it's not a good situation at all. I refused to go fishing in Mexico because the boat had no safety equipment at all.

It's a sad situation; there's still a chance of them being found. A Marine went overboard off an aircraft carrier and he stayed afloat by inflating his pants like how they show you to do at Scout camp. He was found by a fishing boat.

All you can do right now is hope for the best so my prayers are with you!

Sorry to say Nitro, the situation looks grim at this point, Bill is still in ICU from hypothermia and he has been out of the water for over 36 hours now. You wouldn't think 68 degree water would be bad enough to cause it that quickly but I quess it must be. I'm sure the 45 degree air temp the last few nights hasn't helped any. Then again we have been hearing some remarkable accounts so we remain hopeful.

Thank you all for your kind thoughts.

[bantonelli]

SparkieD and Tiki-Tom,

I, too, like many are just seeing this now. The power of prayer can bring a miracle to your family - its not impossible....I pray that it does......may Dan be out of harm's way and may God carry him to safety.

[binnie]

Sparkie and Tiki, you are in my thoughts.

It's times like these that make you realize how unimportant most of the things we stress about are.

God bless.

[bastardog]

Hope everthing turns fine and everyone is rescued.

God know what He does and why

[PETE'S BROTHER]

so sorry to hear this, thoughts and prayers with you and your family.

[SparkieD]

Thanks everybody. I wish I could say things are getting easier, but they aren't. DanDan would think it's the coolest thing in the world that a bunch of folks from a DLR forum are thinking of him like this. It means a lot to us and it would mean a lot to him.

BTW, the kids are doing great. They both cried pretty hard for awhile when they found out the search was over. His little girl wrote him a letter and tied it to some helium balloons. They went straight out over the ocean. I'm sure she will have her moments, but she's such a remarkable kid to show the strength she has.

[Vinnie Velvet]

Originally posted by SparkieD
Thanks everybody. I wish I could say things are getting easier, but they aren't. DanDan would think it's the coolest thing in the world that a bunch of folks from a DLR forum are thinking of him like this. It means a lot to us and it would mean a lot to him.

BTW, the kids are doing great. They both cried pretty hard for awhile when they found out the search was over. His little girl wrote him a letter and tied it to some helium balloons. They went straight out over the ocean. I'm sure she will have her moments, but she's such a remarkable kid to show the strength she has.

:(

My prayers are with all of you.

God Bless.


Damnit. Just the thought of hearing about a young kid losing their parent......jesus.....

[ace diamond]

best wishes on finding them. hope all is well.
i have spoken

[binnie]

Originally posted by SparkieD
Thanks everybody. I wish I could say things are getting easier, but they aren't. DanDan would think it's the coolest thing in the world that a bunch of folks from a DLR forum are thinking of him like this. It means a lot to us and it would mean a lot to him.

BTW, the kids are doing great. They both cried pretty hard for awhile when they found out the search was over. His little girl wrote him a letter and tied it to some helium balloons. They went straight out over the ocean. I'm sure she will have her moments, but she's such a remarkable kid to show the strength she has.

Sparkie: I hope that you are holding together as well as possible. My heart bleeds for those kids, I just can't imagine what they must be going through.

God bless.

[Ozzy Fudd]

Sparkie and Tiki,
I just read this whole thread( i just seen it tonight ) my prayers are with all of you.

[DirtyDeeds]

Originally posted by SparkieD

BTW, the kids are doing great. They both cried pretty hard for awhile when they found out the search was over. His little girl wrote him a letter and tied it to some helium balloons. They went straight out over the ocean. I'm sure she will have her moments, but she's such a remarkable kid to show the strength she has.

That's one of the most heartbreaking and sweet things I've ever read.

I pray that God rests his soul and that the little children have strength and have already received many of the gifts Dan had to offer them.

[SparkieD]

Hey all. Haven't felt much like posting lately, but I just wanted to say thanks again to all of you for all your kind words and encouragement. I showed this thread to my sister and it really touched her heart to know how many caring people there are out there. Things are not much easier. The DNR is still out looking for him, but there is little, if any, hope. He hasn't been declared deceased, so it is very difficult to "get on with life" knowing at some point in the near future arrangements will have to be made.

His girlfriend had her ultrasound Wednesday...It's a little boy. DanDan had already picked out a middle name-Killian...yes, after the beer. He was so proud of his Irish heritage and he loved beer. A little too much, actually.

[Hummarstra]

I'm praying for you guys. God bless.

[VanHalener]

Damnit man! http://i7.tinypic.com/4xzgbx5.gif

PM or call me if we can help the family out from here in any way.

[jharp84]

Originally posted by VanHalener
Damnit man! http://i7.tinypic.com/4xzgbx5.gif

PM or call me if we can help the family out from here in any way.

I 2nd that! :)

[Anonymous]

Originally posted by SparkieD
His little girl wrote him a letter and tied it to some helium balloons. They went straight out over the ocean.

Fuck, I just shed a tear...

I can't think of anything else to say... I just hope she'll eventually "forget" about the whole deal.

Cheers! :bottle:

[Vanessa]

hey sparkie i'm sorry to hear about this i'll pray for you and your family in hopes that everything will be ok

[Hyman Roth]

Jeez I just stumbled upon this thread. Tiki and Sparkie - I am so sorry. What a tragedy. Good people like you two do not deserve this to happen to them and certainly not the children involved. I wish there was something I could do to help. I hope Bill is doing better. Please - call, PM or email if you feel like it. My thoughts and prayers are with your family.

[Freewheelin]

I just read this today and I cant imagine what it must be like to go thru this, I am a Dad of 3 kids and it really hurts me to think of what your family is experiencing . I pray that God gives you the strength to go on and that the little girl will be ok.

[binnie]

Originally posted by SparkieD
Hey all. Haven't felt much like posting lately, but I just wanted to say thanks again to all of you for all your kind words and encouragement. I showed this thread to my sister and it really touched her heart to know how many caring people there are out there. Things are not much easier. The DNR is still out looking for him, but there is little, if any, hope. He hasn't been declared deceased, so it is very difficult to "get on with life" knowing at some point in the near future arrangements will have to be made.

His girlfriend had her ultrasound Wednesday...It's a little boy. DanDan had already picked out a middle name-Killian...yes, after the beer. He was so proud of his Irish heritage and he loved beer. A little too much, actually.

That maybe one of the saddest things I've ever read. My thoughts are with you Sparkie.