Life’s journey highlighted by those we help along the way
From the editor:
Are you on the journey of your life? You should be. — Michael Ceraso
Last week’s good news:
Kalyna Fedorowycz loves horses.
The 16-year-old Topanga, Calif., equestrian has been training with her neighbor, Tamara Walker, for most of her life. Last month, when the Palisades Fire threatened Kalyna’s home, Walker’s horse farm and all of their horses, Walker and the Fedorowycz family sprang into action.
When Sovereignty, Walker’s Friesian-warmblood cross, grew too scared to load into a horse trailer, Walker had no choice but to leave him behind as she evacuated her other nine horses.
Worried about the gelding, Kalyna and her father returned to check on him the next day.
“He was scared and covered in ash; it was blowing all around him, so I cleaned him up and I tried to calm him down,” Kalyna said. “The concern was that even if Sovereignty wasn’t hurt by the fire, the stress would cause him to colic, or he’d get hurt on a fence trying to escape.”
Kalyna Fedorowycz, 16, of Topanga, Calif., is pictured leading her neighbor’s frightened horse, Sovereignty, through the devastation wrought by the Palisades Fire last month. (Credit: Markian Fedorowycz)
When she saw how terrified Sovereignty was as the flames grew closer, the teen knew what she had to do.
Kalyn saddled him up and they took the journey of their lives.
Read how the teen saved the horse here.
Good news you may have missed:
A Colorado snowmobiler is lucky to be alive after being trapped beneath several feet of snow for more than an hour before being rescued.
Body-worn camera footage released by the Summit County Sheriff’s Office captured the moment of the rescue in harrowing detail.
Watch the bodycam footage below.
According to officials, the unnamed man was riding snowmobiles with a friend Monday in the Shrine Bowl vicinity of the Vail Pass Recreation Area when they inadvertently set off an avalanche.
Upon realizing his friend was missing, the second man immediately called 911 and began searching. Summit County Rescue Group volunteers responded in large numbers, as did the Rapid Avalanche Deployment Team and first responders from the Sheriff’s Office.
Snowmobiles carried two dog teams and 10 searchers to the scene of the avalanche, which measured nearly 500 feet wide.
A still image from body-worn camera footage shows authorities’ frantic rescue of a snowmobile rider buried under several feet of snow by an avalanche. (Credit: Summit County Sheriff’s Office)
“At 1:13 p.m., a searcher on the debris field saw a small piece of fabric right at the surface,” the rescue group wrote on Facebook. “He pulled on it and noticed that it was a portion of an airbag that the man had inflated. The (man) was uncovered and dug out after being buried for approximately 65 minutes. He was conscious, breathing and able to converse with rescuers.”
After being moved from the area via snowmobile and an Orion, described as a gurney on skis, the man was treated at Summit Medical Center for the early stages of hypothermia.
He survived being buried under about three feet of snow, rescuers said.
“We are incredibly grateful for this fortunate outcome and proud of the coordinated efforts of our deputies and the Summit County Rescue Group,” Sheriff’s Office officials said. “Their dedication and skill made this rescue possible.”
Searchers are pictured at the site of the daring rescue. (Credit: Summit County Rescue Group)
Good news to come:
(Note: This past week, we celebrated humanity’s excellence. The week kicked off Feb. 17, known as Random Acts of Kindness Day.)
On Tuesday, read about how a police officer raised money for a pizza delivery driver who delivered a customer’s food on foot in a snowstorm — and received a $2 tip. Also learn how a well-known landscaper crowdfunded more than $880,000 for an elderly woman struggling to care for herself and her home.
On Thursday, read about a Colorado man who spends his snow days helping strangers stranded in snowy conditions.