Our Heartfelt thanks:)

Whomever, wherever you are please accept our heartfelt thanks for returning the most important of our stolen property.  Thanks for looking into your heart and deciding to return Kent's ski, KeNyA's 7th grade yearbook, photos from her 8th grade school trip to Florida and most of the contents of my briefcase and wallet.  Our hearts were warmed and our faith in humanity re-spirited.  

We choose to believe you examined the papers in my briefcase and got a very personal glimpse of our life, perhaps you came here to our site as well.  You saw us for who we are, what we do, what we try to do and realized we needed some help.  Just like us, you did what you could at that particular time.  All you could do to help was to return a part of our life, an irreplaceable part of our life.  You have our heartfelt thanks for that.   

 

Lots of people, including us, make poor choices from time to time.  We did the night we left our valuables in our unlocked car.  You did when you stole over $3,000 worth of stuff from our car (what you kept is valued at $1200).  While stealing isn't a good thing to do, it doesn't make you a bad human, it makes you a person who makes some bad choices.  You aren't a bad human, or bad people, as evidenced by your keeping our stuff for a month and then returning what was of no value to you, major value to us.  

 

You are a person(s) behind being a thief.  As you learned from going through our papers, we are people behind being fools for leaving our car unlocked.  Thanks for letting your human side show.

 

Um, we'd still like to have everything returned (please and thanks).  The Billibong sweatshirt you kept once belonged to Former US DisAbledWaterSki Team Bronze Medalist, Dave Wysong.  He was one cool guy and an awesome friend . . . he died March 8th of this year.  Every time Kent wore that sweatshirt he thought of Dave, perhaps you will now too. 

 

The hidden $100 bill was a gift from my son Chris' girlfriend, Sarah.  Everyone that knows us, including Sarah, knows that we support our ski pond from our pockets, doing without many of the things most folks won't, so that we can keep introducing people to this great family sport.  Sarah sold her truck and gave me that $100 bill to use at the pond (at the time we were in need of a new boat carburetor).  I tucked it away to save it until we found the perfect use for it that would forever honor Sarah's gift as she had honored us.  Sarah died three weeks later from injuries sustained in a car accident.  Chris and Sarah's two teenage brothers were driving her 200 miles to help move her back home.  A tire blew out, the car rolled twice . . . and Sarah was the only one in the car not wearing a seat belt.  She was 20, Chris 23.  We'd just left her funeral in Monterey the day we drove to Redding.  Did you see her Memorial folder on the front floorboard by the candy you took?  As you can tell, I was really bothered by the theft of that $100 bill.  Sarah and Chris are Christians, Chris is working towards becoming a Youth Pastor.  Sarah had a huge heart, always giving.  I'm sure she'd of said you must have needed the money more than she.  That was why she gave it to us, we needed it more than she. 

 

I'd also like to have the two hand written notes from my daughters back, the one from Steffie is 7 years old.  The notes were to remind me I'm loved even when my day isn't great. Just seeing the notes would make my day, whether or not I read them.

 

Remember what I said about humans making bad choices? I loved Sarah, but she had an issue with seat belts, wouldn't wear them.  Her bad choice resulted in her death, which is no big deal to her, she loved God and looked forward to being in Heaven; but her bad choice was a big deal to others.  Her brothers, the two in the back seat the night she died and the one at home, her parents, her friends, and Chris who was driving the night she died will forever live with the consequences of her bad choice.

 

Our bad choice of not locking our car had the consequence of our stuff being stolen, and us not having the ability to replace it immediately, some of it ever, like that book of notes about our ski pond project, you saw I've been writing in that for 2 years.

 

Not to diminish our thanks one bit, because we are very appreciative of your returning what you did, but you should really think about finding a way to return what you have or pay the dollar value.  You are a decent human being(s), we see that.  Nevertheless, your bad choice is legally considered Grand Theft.  That probably means jail for you.  Yuck, that's someplace I never want to be, does it sound fun to you?  It could affect the rest of your life, and your family's too.

 

Please (and thanks) continue on the path of human kindness that you started with us.  That's what life's all about you know.  Stuff doesn't really count in the end, it's who you are, what you do with your time on the planet. Through our association with waterSkiers with disabilities we've learned the Secret of Life.  It's ten words long, two letters per word.  "If it is to be, it is up to me!"  Your life then, is up to you.  

You can't change what's happened, but you can change today and shape your own future.  Think about it, and thanks again:)  We have faith you'll do the right thing again.  You may email us by clicking on the icon to make arrangements to repay us, if you do so there won't be any legal consequences.   Pondly, KeNevA