Community Steps Up For Blind Homeless Marine Veteran

Blind, homeless vet's draws support, but fate still uncertain 
KHOU 11 News
Doug Miller
February 25, 2015

"Ashamed," said Kenneth Fregia, one of the officers who stopped to help. "There's probably thousands of them in the city just like that, you know. It's a shame."

HOUSTON - A blind and homeless Marine Corps veteran evicted from a shelter that failed to pay its rent spent Tuesday night inside a dark and cold building in the Third Ward, sharing sleeping quarters with his caretaker.

Enrique Avala moved into the building along with Tom Jones, who ran the non-profit shelter that closed earlier in the day and hoped to open a new shelter in the new location. But his fate remained uncertain, as the new building's owner complained that Jones moved in without a signed lease and gave utility workers the wrong address to turn on the electricity.

Avala's story, aired on KHOU 11 News Tuesday evening, triggered a flood of phone calls and emails from viewers offering to help. Most of them offered money, a couple offered him a place to stay and one even offered to pay for a few nights in a hotel room. KHOU passed all of the offers along to Jones, who acts as Avala's caretaker.
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Service Dog Kicked Out of VA--For Blind Veteran

Blind Vet's Guide Dog Banned From VA Hospital
SF Weekly
Posted By David-Elijah Nahmod
Dec 12, 2014 at 2:14 PM

Matthew Easton's dog Chestnut isn't just his buddy — he's his eyesight.

Easton, an Air Force veteran who served from 2001-2005, lost most of his vision due to an eye disease. Chestnut is Easton's guide dog. With his faithful companion by his side, Easton is able to get around his neighborhood in San Luis Obispo.

Chestnut also guides Easton from Central California to the VA Hospital in San Francisco's Outer Richmond District, where he receives medical treatment for his eyes.

But recently, the VA Hospital delivered some not-so-welcoming news, telling Easton that he could no longer bring Chestnut into the eye exam room at the hospital.

"I was told by the Patient Advocate Office as well as the eye clinic that the only option was to have a family member or a friend watch my dog for me during my exam," Easton told SF Weekly. "I was told if that wasn't an option that I was to call Animal Control and have them take my guide dog to the shelter at my own expense just for the short duration of my appointment."

Easton says that he was advised to "leave his dog in the car."

Obvious questions arose, such as: leave Chestnut in what car? A blind person can't legally drive. As a person who lives on disability insurance Easton can hardly afford boarding fees. And besides, how would Easton get from the pound—which is in the Mission—to the VA Hospital in the Outer Richmond without his guide dog?
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Veterans train to climb Denali, while blind

Blind veterans train on Quandry Peak and Mt. Lincoln for Denali ascent
Summit Daily
Melanie Wong
March 28, 2014

SUMMIT COUNTY — To Scott Smiley, Colorado mountains are the crunching of snow underneath his shoes, the scent of pine needles, the chirping of birds and the feel of fresh, alpine air on his skin.

Because the military veteran and instructor is blind, what he won’t see is the whiteness of snow or the sight of towering peaks, until guide Eric Alexander paints a mental image of the rugged mountains.

“I still think it’s one of the most beautiful things,” Smiley said. “The air is fresh, pure and clean. I live in Spokane, Wash., and you don’t get those senses hitting you all the time. There’s the beauty of seeing things, but those pictures go to my mind and it puts a smile on my face.”

Smiley and fellow veteran Marty Bailey both fought for the U.S. Army in Iraq, where they lost their sight — Smiley to a car bomb and Bailey to a grenade explosion. But being blind hasn’t dampened their sense of adventure. The two were in Colorado in mid-March to train for a May trip up Alaska’s Denali mountain (Mount McKinley) — North America’s tallest peak. Joined by Vail Valley resident and mountaineer Eric Alexander, the two got some altitude training in Summit and neighboring Park County by climbing Quandary Peak and Mount Lincoln — two of the state’s above 14,000 foot peaks.
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Charity taking back home of blind veteran

Home building charity for wounded veterans questioned in lawsuit
KHOU 11 News
by Kevin Reece
Posted on March 18, 2014

HOUSTON -- Helping a Hero in West Houston is a popular charity: 100 homes built or in the works in 22 different states, but a lawsuit is publicizing an important clause in the housing contracts. And it’s a clause one Houston-area family says it didn’t know was there until their badly wounded veteran died.

A provision in the contract says that if the Veteran dies within 10 years of taking ownership that the charity can repurchase the house by repaying the Veteran's estate his original $50,000 investment.

We first told Hunter LeVine's story four years ago. The Woodlands native was blinded by a roadside bomb in Iraq. Also suffering from a traumatic brain injury and PTSD he vowed to continue living as independently as possible.

Then in December of 2011, Helping a Hero awarded him a new home in Tomball. Built through donations all Hunter had to do was take out a $50,000 mortgage and the home was his. It is the standard shared expense agreement the charity uses for all of its projects so the veterans have a financial stake in the property as well. The total value of Hunter’s new home was listed as $168,000.

But last June on a trip to Florida, Hunter died suddenly. He suffered a heart attack in his sleep. He was just 25 years old.

"Hunter was very proud of this house. It made him feel safe,” said his father Beau LeVine.

A short time later Beau LeVine says he received notice that the charity had plans for the house. They were moving to exercise a clause in the contract that the LeVines said they didn’t even know was in the paperwork.
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Blind veteran skis and target shoots with assist from technology

Blind veteran skis and target shoots with assist from technology
Tri Valley Central
By KELSEY FOWLER Summit (Colo.) Daily News
December 15, 2013

FRISCO, Colo. (AP) — Ever since he was young, Steve Baskis wanted to serve in the military like his father and grandfather before him. But just eight months into his Army deployment in Iraq, in May 2008, Baskis lost his vision entirely during a military operation.

Losing his sight didn’t mean Baskis lost his spirit. Baskis recently spent time at the Frisco Nordic Center, training with the hope of someday making the U.S. Paralympic biathlon ski team.

Biathlon combines cross-country skiing and shooting. Missing a target means skiing a penalty loop, increasing the race time.

“My ultimate goal is to make the team at some point,” Baskis said. “I’m still learning quite a bit how to ski.”

A blind biathlete such as Baskis has a special laser rifle system that uses sound to guide him toward the center of the target.
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VA officials probe how its hospital treated blind Las Vegas veteran

UPDATE
VA investigators sent text messages in North Las Vegas probe

VA officials probe how its hospital treated blind Las Vegas veteran
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
By KEITH ROGERS
November 27, 2013

Sandi Niccum is shown slumped in a hospital waiting room on one of her last days. She was blind and in severe pain. (Courtesy Dee Redwine)

The House Veterans Affairs Committee and local VA officials are probing allegations that staff at the VA Medical Center in North Las Vegas mistreated a blind veteran who was writhing in pain while she waited six hours for emergency care at the center on Oct. 22.

The long wait compounded by frustration with incomplete radiology orders and alleged rude treatment increased 78-year-old Sandi Niccum’s frustration to the point that she would pound her walking cane on the hospital floor.

“Several times she would just beat it on the floor and say, ‘Please somebody help me.’ But they didn’t. Nobody cared,” said Niccum’s friend, Dee Redwine, who was with her through the ordeal.

The Navy veteran, described by her aide, Shirley Newsham, as a “brittle diabetic,” had been a volunteer for the VA’s Visually Impairment Services Team for at least eight years. She died Nov. 15 at a local hospice.

Before she died, Niccum asked Redwine to write a chronology of the VA experience and submit it to the Review-Journal.

Her blindness stemmed from diabetes developed during her fifth year of active duty with the Navy Medical Corps as a medic for the Marine Corps at Parris Island, S.C. She was honorably discharged in 1958. She lost vision in one eye in 1983 and the other eye three years later.

Suffering from septic shock from the ruptured abscess in her colon, she died in her sleep about 2 a.m. on Nov. 15. The exact cause of death was unknown, Redwine said.

Niccum’s ashes will be buried at the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Boulder City at 10 a.m. on Dec. 12 with full military honors.

Donations can be made in her name to the Blinded Veterans Association, P.O. Box 46272, Las Vegas, NV 89114.

Contact reporter Keith Rogers at krogers@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0308.

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Advocate for blind veterans Sandi Niccum passed away

Navy veteran Sandi Niccum dies at age 78 in Las Vegas
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
By KEITH ROGERS
November 22, 2013

Navy veteran Sandi Niccum became blind after her service career, but that never stopped her from being an advocate for veterans and others like her.

The upbeat, retired medic died Nov. 15. She was 78.

Her ashes will be buried at the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Boulder City with full military honors at 10 a.m. Dec. 12.

“Sandi was an extraordinary woman and as tough as nails, but she was also an inspiration to everyone that knew her and worked with her,” said Joe Tasby, president of the Blinded Veterans Association and commander of American Legion Post 14.

In a 2011 interview with the Review-Journal before the 66th annual Blinded Veterans Association convention in Las Vegas, she talked about how she adjusted to her blindness by learning to bowl and drive golf balls at the range by developing a feel for the location of pins or a ball on the ground.

“You have to use your imagination to figure things out,” she said.

Sandra Arlene House was born April 28, 1935, in Seattle.

She joined the Navy after graduating from high school in Washington state’s San Juan Islands.

Niccum’s blindness stemmed from diabetes she developed during her fifth year on active duty with the Navy Medical Corps as a medic for the Marine Corps at Beaufort Memorial Hospital, Paris Island, S.C.

Because she had no history of diabetes in her family, her disability was deemed to be service-connected at the time of her honorable discharge in 1958.

She became a volunteer at the Department of Veterans Affairs in 1998 and was awarded the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award for her service to veterans.
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Blinded Vietnam veteran makes advancing technologies "worth a darn"

Blinded Vietnam veteran makes advancing technologies "worth a darn"
CBS News
Lindsey Boerma
November 5, 2013

Former Marine Scout Sgt. John Fales, Jr. lost his eyesight in 1966 via mortars during a deadly ambush in Vietnam.

"I was a forward observer for artillery, and my head should have been down, but it was up," he told CBSNews.com. "I was not a happy camper. It was very difficult to, kind of, adjust."

He spent the next several years learning the basics of a newly blinded lifestyle, like braille and how to move around with a cane through rehabilitation services at the VA. Then, he headed to St. John's University in New York, where he earned his bachelor's degree, and later Hofstra University, where he received his master's in the field of education.

Blinded Vietnam veteran John Fales, Jr. shows off the collapsible "Americane" his Blinded American Veterans Foundation invented.

"During this period of time, all the new technologies were developed, and it made it a lot easier," Fales said. "While I was going to school I had somebody tape books for me - since it was considered my vocational rehab, the VA paid for it. I'd just put it on at the end of the day and lay down, and it just wasn't too bad."

Other technologies Fales took advantage of included the Kurzweil reading machine, which allowed him to use nearly every facet of advancing computer systems just as someone with sight would. Another is called the Scriptalk, which reads the labels of prescription medications and blasts instructions out on audio. There's also the Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD), which allows Fales to download to audio any title from the Library of Congress.
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Community comes together to help blind veteran after tornado

Gillespie tornado leaves blind veteran homeless
KSDK News
Jun 10, 2013
GILLESPIE, Il

**UPDATE**

Since our story aired Sunday night donations have been pouring in. By Monday morning the total was over $5,300.

**ORIGINAL STORY**

A Navy veteran in the small town of Gillespie, Illinois is in desperate need of your help after his home was destroyed by a tornado.

Joe Zimmerman proudly served in the U.S. Navy from 1985-89 but has since run into health problems including neuropathy and most recently blindness.
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Blind Veterans tell congress not to mess with success

Why would someone tell Congress they don't want the money? Simple. It already works the way it is.

Blind Vets Warn Against VA Funding Guide Dogs
Mar 05, 2013
Military.com
by Bryant Jordan

The Blind Veterans Association is warning lawmakers against passing legislation – already sidetracked at least twice – to have the Department of Veterans Affairs cover costs of getting guide dogs for blind vets.

BVA officials say that lawmakers have been pressed for three years to provide millions of dollars annually to ensure that blind veterans who want a dog – whose costs have been put at $35,000 – can afford one.

However, the dogs have been paid for by non-profit organization like the The Seeing Eye in New Jersey since the 1960s. BVA officials fear that requiring the VA to pay for a dog will open up the entire system to abuse and fraud.

“For 67 years, BVA has worked with both VA and the original guide dog training programs to ensure that any blinded veteran who wishes to have a guide dog can obtain one for free,” Sam Huhn, national president of the BVA, told a joint meeting of the Senate and House Veterans Affairs committees recently. “For decades, hundreds of blinded veterans have received guide dogs from a handful of well-known programs that never charged a veteran to receive a guide dog.”

Huhn said Congress needs to be wary of funding an unnecessary guide-dog program, “for the protection of disabled veterans, the strong potential risk of fraud, misleading advertising, and VA liability for large future expenditures.”
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Soldier receives hero's welcome after being blinded in Afghanistan

Soldier receives hero's welcome after being blinded in Afghanistan
By JIM CARNEY
Akron Beacon Journal
Published: December 9, 2012

Aaron Hale knew his story could have turned out so much worse.

So did Robert Gilbert Sr.

On Saturday afternoon, Gilbert drove his motorcycle with other bikers as part of an escort of more than a dozen police, highway patrol and sheriff’s cruisers to accompany Hale back home to his alma mater, Revere High School.

Unlike similar events in recent years when police with sirens ushered home a military member who had been killed in action in Iraq or Afghanistan, this escort was full of joy.

When Gilbert’s son, Marine Gunnery Sgt. Robert Gilbert II, 28, was killed in Afghanistan in 2010, police escorted his flag-draped casket through Richfield.

On Saturday, Gilbert was one of the first to welcome Hale, 34, who was blinded in a roadside bombing one year ago Saturday, at an uplifting homecoming ceremony.

“We have to do this for each and every one when they come back,” said Gilbert, 58, a retired Richfield police officer.

“Fortunately, this gentleman is with us.”

Army Staff Sgt. Hale, his wife, Kelly, and their four children, were given a hero’s welcome at the high school as nearly 700 people filled the auditorium and gave a standing ovation when Hale walked to the stage to speak.
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Blind Navy Lieutenant Sets Paralympic Record

Navy Lieutenant Sets Paralympic Record
Sep 04, 2012
American Forces Press Service
by Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.

WASHINGTON – The United States had the Olympic performance of Baltimore native Michael Phelps to celebrate last month, and now the nation can rejoice in the dominating performance of U.S. Paralympic swimmer Navy Lt. Bradley Snyder.

Snyder carried over his strong performance in June’s U.S. swimming trials by setting a Paralympic record in his qualifying event here Aug. 31 for the 100-meter freestyle and earning a gold medal in the final round.

“It's really crazy. … It's really loud in here,” Snyder said following his record-setting qualifying swim. “It's exciting. We were able to go out and do what we were wanting to do. I was pretty happy to go out and get the time I got tonight.”

After Snyder swam the 100-meter freestyle in 57.18 seconds to set the Paralympic record, he reflected on the feeling of stepping out in front a huge crowd to represent the United States, saying it was “a huge comfort” getting into the water. “I've never walked out in front of this many people,” he said.

“[It's] very crazy, and a lot of excitement. The second I hit the pool, it felt natural again. It felt like I was in my zone, so it felt really good.”

The Navy lieutenant, who was blinded while attempting to disable an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan on Sept. 7, 2011, will now face what he considers his flagship event on the anniversary of the accident.

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Former Navy swimmer wins gold at Paralympics while blind

A year after the explosion that blinded him, former Navy swimmer wins gold at Paralympics
By DAVID BROWN
The Washington Post
Published: September 3, 2012

BALTIMORE — “Where is he?” said Brian Loeffler, looking down the empty lane of a 50-meter pool at 7 o’clock in the morning.

To his right, a masters’ practice was finishing up. In front of him, early risers were doing laps. He didn’t seem overly concerned that his star swimmer had disappeared.

“There he is,” the coach said, and called to a man at the far end of the pool. “Brad, you’re two lanes over.”

As the swimmer moved along the wall at the shallow end back to the correct lane, Loeffler explained that his charge sometimes submarines under the lane line when sprinting the breaststroke. It wouldn’t happen if he weren’t pushing himself in the final weeks before the Paralympic Games in London.

And also if he weren’t blind.

Bradley Snyder is midway through a seven-event schedule at the Paralympic Games, which end Sept. 9. He won a gold medal in the 100-meter freestyle Friday and a silver in the 50-meter freestyle Saturday. A former captain of the U.S. Naval Academy’s swim team, Snyder never imagined he would be in this meet. Nevertheless, it marks his return to a sport that once helped define who he was, before bad luck changed everything.
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Wounded Marine's inspiring recovery

Wounded Marine's inspiring recovery
Posted: May 21, 2012
TAMPA
(FOX 13)

You'd be hard pressed to find a more optimistic man than Mike Jernigan. The wounded war veteran has endured so much in a short period of time. He was severely injured in Iraq when an IED (improvised explosive device) blew-up the vehicle he was riding in.

The injured Marine endured dozens of surgeries, almost dying several times on the operating room table, but was able to recover. His skull was crushed, he lost sight in both eyes, sustained severe burns, and injured his knees.
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Iraq Veteran graduates with matching gown for guide dog

For Iraq veteran, graduation day at USFSP marks the end of a long journey
By Kim Wilmath
Times Staff Writer
In Print: Friday, May 4, 2012

ST. PETERSBURG — Mike Jernigan slid into a seat in the front row of the classroom.

He wore a bow tie and a crisp button-down shirt. Green slacks and freshly shined brown leather shoes.

He smiled, bounced his foot on the floor.

"This," he said, "is the conclusion of an arduous journey."

It was his last class.

That journey spanned more than 10 years and thousands of miles. It took Jernigan from an aimless youth in St. Petersburg to the battlegrounds in Iraq. He's changed now, physically and in so many other ways.

He left St. Petersburg able to see, for instance, and with an uninjured brain. But he also left a frustrated 20-something, immature and unsure of himself.

Now, finally graduating from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg this weekend, Jernigan, 33, says he's a better man.

"If I could go back and do it all again," he said, "I'd do it the same."

The camera battery is charged, and Jernigan's cap and gown is ready — with a matching gown for his guide dog, Brittani.

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Blind Iraq Veteran taking Walk for Vision

Moorhead man who lost sight in Iraq War to take part in Walk for Vision

By: Helmut Schmidt,
INFORUM
April 26, 2012
MOORHEAD -


Eric Marts made it a point to take care of the soldiers he led in battle in Iraq, even as repeated roadside blasts were robbing him of his eyesight.

Now blind, the 50-year-old former Army National Guard master sergeant is still helping others, hoping to give people in the same situation – whether veterans or lifelong civilians – the same advantages.

Marts plans to walk with his guide dog, “Corporal” Deacon, at North Dakota State University on Saturday in the Fargo version of “Walk for Vision,” the main fundraiser for the North Dakota Association of the Blind.

“I’m pretty blessed,” Marts says matter-of-factly.

After all, the Army and the Department of Veterans Affairs helped get him the training and the technology to make a life without sight more navigable, as well as his big, friendly English Labrador guide dog.

He wants to be part of the walk to raise money so that those without his support system can go to camps and get the same sort of help to ease their way through the world.

“So I guess that’s a good cause,” Marts said.
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Eye doctors salvage sight in war zone

Eye doctors salvage sight in war zone
By Carmen Gentile - Special for USA Today
Posted : Monday Jun 13, 2011 9:08:59 EDT
KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — Spc. Joshua Pederson was manning his armored vehicle's revolving gun turret when insurgents peppered the hulking truck with rocket propelled grenades and small arms fire.

When a round penetrated the vehicle, Pederson said he ducked inside and was hit with fragments and debris that sprayed his face and torso.

Lying in a hospital bed, a Purple Heart freshly pinned to his gown, the 24-year-old Phoenix native bore numerous scabs and sutures along his jaw line and on his eyelids. Small particles of debris had entered his eyes, though they were largely protected thanks to the ballistic-proof glasses he was wearing.
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Eye doctors salvage sight in war zone

"Hope Unseen" blind soldier and daughter of NY fallen firefighter earn awards

The Christophers' Special Awards to Capt. Scotty Smiley, First Blind Active-Duty Army Officer, and Shannon Hickey, Young Activist for the Homeless

Capt. Smiley, commander of Warrior Transition Unit for ailing or wounded soldiers at West Point, to receive 2011 Christopher Leadership Award; Hickey, 21, founder of ministry serving poor and homeless which was inspired by 9/11 victim, Father Mychal Judge, to get 2011 James Keller Award
NEW YORK, April 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- (http://www.myprgenie.com) -- Capt. Scotty Smiley, the U.S. Army's first blind active-duty officer, and Shannon Hickey, a 21-year old college student who, at age 11, was inspired to help provide for the poor and homeless by the example of Father Mychal Judge, the New York City Fire Dept. Chaplain killed in the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks, will both receive special Awards at the 62nd annual Christopher Awards ceremony in New York City on Thursday, May 19th.

Capt. Smiley, who was nearly killed while leading his platoon on patrol in Iraq in 2005, will receive the Christopher Leadership Award for his exemplary courage and leadership in the face of adversity. He opted not to retire from the Army, as is customary after a life-changing injury, but instead fought to regain his health and went on to command the Warrior Transition Unit for ailing or wounded soldiers at West Point. Hickey will receive the 2011 James Keller Award for founding Mychal's Message, a ministry that serves the poor and homeless, and which has taught many teens about the problem of homelessness in society.

The Christopher Leadership Award recognizes individuals whose work, actions and example serve as a guiding light to those in and out of public life, and inspires others to lead lives that make a difference for the good. This year's winner barely survived the shrapnel and debris that pierced his eyes and brain following a car bomb attack in Iraq. Crushed by the news he would never see again, Captain Smiley at first questioned his faith and his belief in God.

During his recovery at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the Army pressured his wife to follow standard procedure by signing papers that would "medically retire" her husband, since it was accepted wisdom that blind people couldn't serve in the Army. She resisted, believing her husband might still have a future within the Army he loved.

After tremendous physical, emotional and spiritual struggles, Capt. Smiley came to terms with his new reality and successfully fought to stay on active duty. Along with teaching leadership at West Point, he also earned an MBA from Duke University with assistance from his wife and a dedicated tutor, and wrote an autobiography, "Hope Unseen."

With the vast number of American servicemen and women returning from war with serious injuries, his job is of critical importance as is the example he is setting. He remains committed to living a life of service to others and admits his trust in God has been taken to new levels.

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The Christophers' Special Awards

Blind Iraq Vet runs Disney Marathon with Lt. Colonel

Disney marathoner lost his eyesight while serving in Iraq
By Mark Jenkins, Reporter
Last Updated: Sunday, January 09, 2011 2:17 PM
LAKE BUENA VISTA --
At 5:30 a.m. and 45 degrees, more than 18,000 athletes pounded the pavement for a morning marathon.

The runners ranged from professionals to amateurs, to those who can't walk and another who can't see.

While serving in Iraq, Captain Ivan Castro was nearly killed in a mortar attack that took his eyesight.

After numerous surgeries, he is now more active than most people.

"I cycle swim, I climb, I do triathlons. But the most important thing is that I can still serve," said Castro.

This was his 14th marathon.

Lieutenant Colonel Jeff Bryan ran with Castro in the Disney marathon, attached to each other by a shoe lace.

Castro has been called courageous and heroic, but today he respectfully earned the title "Goofy".

He was one of 5,000 runners that took the goofy challenge of running both the half marathon Saturday and the full marathon Sunday.
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Disney marathoner lost his eyesight while serving in Iraq

Iraq Veteran and Advocate passed away after surgery

Obituary: Ryan Job was a spokesman for wounded veterans
Ryan Job, who grew up in Issaquah, died Thursday morning after major reconstructive surgery in Phoenix. He was 28.


Blinded by a sniper's bullet in Iraq, Ryan Job retained his characteristic determination and persistence. He climbed Mount Rainier, trained for a triathlon and became a spokesman for an organization that helps wounded veterans transition to civilian life.

"He didn't back down from any challenge," said a friend, Tyler Lein, of Scottsdale, Ariz.

Mr. Job, who grew up in Issaquah, died Thursday morning after major reconstructive surgery at Maricopa Medical Center in Phoenix. He was 28.

Mr. Job's younger brother, Aaron, served three tours of duty in Iraq with the Marines. The Seattle Times profiled the Job family during Aaron Job's deployments in 2003 and 2004.
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http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/obituaries/2009945844_ryanjob26m.html