Thank You

I wanted to write a quick note and thank friends and family for their sweet notes and especially for their sweet prayers. It has been 24 days and the reality of things is still a surreal nightmare at best.

Now comes that point in life where we can choose whether to walk with God, or walk away from Him. There is no peace in the latter. Someday I hope to understand this... for now, I trust that there is a God who loves me, knows my ache, and will walk me through this life.

One of Shaun's favorite scriptures ... jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

I miss you, Shaun.

Chaui - August 6, 2007 to June 20, 2008

(Christmas Day with the kiddies - don't worry - I didn't humiliate him like this regularly!)Chaui, short for Chauite, is named for the town drunk in Pejibaye, Costa Rica. Chaui couldn't really bark, sounded garbled and drunk... hence his name-sake.

My cute little pup, Chaui, was killed on Friday evening. Guess God needed him too...
Chaui and I had gotten pretty dang attached and had some great adventures (hiking, climbing, boating, and exploring). Like most dogs I think, he was really sensitive to the feelings around him. Over the last 2 weeks since Shaun was killed (to the hour almost), Chaui has layed his little head on my chest while I cry. He didn't know what to do - so he'd just look at me and try to lick my tears. Crazy how consoling a little cuddling dog can be. Life has been lonely since Shaun's been gone - just got a lot more so...

I don't understand the plan in all of this - but I believe that Shaun is in heaven, I believe he is at peace and engaged in God's work, and now he's got a little piece of me there. It doesn't make anything feel better, but it is a little comforting to think that Chaui cuddled up in my arms a half-hour before he cuddled up in Shaun's...

I've got Becky's dog now, Jax, he's Chaui's brother - very different in temperment - but sweet. He's a little wussy with hiking and adventure - but we'll both adapt together. (In the above pic, we're climbing in Moab, Chaui's lovin it, Jax is trying to bite my head to get him down).
There has to be some adventure in heaven, or for some of us (including Shaun and I), it wouldn't quite be heaven. Shaun's got a new pal to do stuff with until I get there...

I'm pretty dang homesick...

Shaun :) - xo xo

SHAUN LUNT

The last picture of Shaun - sent from his iPhone earlier in the week with this little note:
"Just landed on the knik river, sitting in my chair. Awesome! (close to anchorage, so have a signal for my iPhone)". He is happy.


Dear friends and family,

Friday evening, my love - Shaun, returned to the Father who gave him life. He was doing what he loved, flying his Super Cub and hopping across beaches near Bethel, Alaska. He saw a cool whale skeleton on the beach and circled around to get a picture. He is an amazing and very skilled pilot. We're not sure exactly what happened, but it appears that he may have been trying to frame a great picture with one hand and flying with the other while slowly circling the skeleton. His plane stalled only 100' from the beach with no room to recover and spiraled down at about 70 mph. I pray that he didn't hurt. Although the pain is immense for his dear friend and fellow pilot Loni Habersetzer, who watched this happen, I am so deeply grateful that someone was flying along side him and he wasn't alone.

He is a tremendous spirit. It is a privilege to know him, and an even greater privilege to love him. He loves his Savior with a depth and passion I've never seen. He walks with God. He lived his life as an absolute testimony of his faith. Shaun paid the price to know God - in the everyday decisions that he made - he sacrified to know God. He so badly wanted his life to mean something - to make a difference. Shaun loves with the same depth and passion. He would give the world if it would bring a small smile to those he loves. He couldn't go more than a few days without calling his family. He needed their connection - and they needed his. His eyes would turn soft and he would smile whenever he spoke of them. They lived inside his heart. Shaun lifts those who know him. He reminded me who I was - and would in a way, miraculous and solely his own, lift me to a higher place and remind me that I always belonged there.

From our pictures you know that Shaun was adventurous and funny and silly - but the real heart of Shaun was brimming with love to be shared. He was always occupied with whether he was serving God enough. He was constantly concerned for the wellbeing of his family and loved ones. His depth over-powers me... I am continually in awe of who he is. I don't have the words to say. It seems like no amount of time would be long enough with him. The loss is so deeply acute.

Thank you to all of you for your love and prayers - they are so welcome and so appreciated. Please continue to pray for Shaun's family. They are so deeply overwhelmed with grief.

Words are inadequate to tell about Shaun - He is so rich and deep and indescribable. Along with all who have had the blessing of Shaun - I ache for the day when I can be with him again. He was an angel among men - EVERYONE who knows him could see that. I have beautiful memories... it has been a blessing to share some of his life with him. I am better for having loved him - that is all he would have wanted.

Nothing can express his legacy and nothing can express my grief at his loss.
I love you Shaun, until heaven...
Forever yours,
Heid

Shaun's Celebration Service

Dear friends of Shaun,
Shaun's family is planning a memorial service for Shaun this coming Sunday evening, June 15 at 7:00 PM. The location is a very special place that Shaun dearly loved:

Camp Mivoden
17415 Hayden Lake Road
Hayden Lake, Idaho

This is located just a few miles north of Coeur D'Alene, Idaho, but allow extra time since you will need to travel a small road around the far side of the lake to the youth camp. Directions are at: http://www.mivoden.com/home/directions Depending on weather we will plan a portion of the celebration of Shaun's life to be out of doors in an ampitheater with a campfire so bring a jacket and be sure to dress casual. Out of doors and casual dress was Shaun's style. Oh, be warned, Shaun hated ties so we will have a person armed with a pair of scissors to cut off any tie that shows up. Light refreshments follow.

The family of Shaun Lunt

PS We will have a Book of Life if you wish to write a note about Shaun bring any memorablia relating to the legacy of his life ... pictures or anything. The book will then be a treasure for the Lunt family. Thank you.

Southern California - May 2008

Shaun sighting in his new .457 Magnum rifle before he gets ready to head to Alaska in a couple of weeks for 2 more months of flying around and living the good life. It's good being Shaun Lunt - unless there's bears involved...

Shaun getting knocked around a bit after shooting the .457 round through his rifle. And he's STILL a great shot...

This was after shooting some .45-70 rounds saying, "Hey, that wasn't so bad!"... then we swtiched to the .457 Magnum...

Shooting the .457 Magnum, shortened barrel, un-ported, Wild West rifle. I only shot it once... My arm went numb and tingly, tears came to my eyes, and I felt like somebody just hit me with a 2x4. If that sucker doesn't stop a bear - what the heck will??

This was fun - shot the .308 sniper rifle at about 250 yards. The scope makes things so much eaiser!

Shaun shooting the .308 sniper rifle... he's good at EVERYTHING!

The .457 ammo isn't on the paper - it's bigger and meaner than the .45-70. Shaun always asks me what I would rather be shot with... are you kidding me?
In the hangar before Shaun heads out to do some aerobatic flying in an Extra. He had to have a heart to heart with the Super Cub so there weren't any hard feelings.
It was another great trip to visit Shaun! He's headed back to Alaska for another couple of months of flying. Keep an eye on his site for his new photos and adventures in the northland. http://www.shaunlunt.typepad.com/. Grizzly Bears beware!!! I'll miss you... PLEASE be safe! I LOVE YOU!

San Diego - Red Bull Air Race - May 04 2008

Shaun and I drove to San Diego for the Red Bull Air Race!! Very cool! I couldn't believe the speed those suckers fly at! They get some serious G's! Before heading to the race we visited seal beach in La Jolla.

seals... hmmm...

We had a great spot to sit at the Air Race - perfect view of the course. These planes fly a little faster than the Super Cub...

Impressive flying.
Loved the Air Race. Great day!

Death Valley - April 2008

Death Valley for a little hiking, camping and shooting stuff

Found some wildflowers in the sand dunes and decided to land and pull out the guns...

We shot the .40 S&W, 12-gauge shotgun (my first time shooting clay discs - I didn't stink too bad!), and the .454 Casull (which scared the crap out of me and I only fired it once!). Shaun on the other hand, was a perfect shot, once again...

We took off again to head toward Death Valley and found a really cool dried lake bed to land in. Only the crust was hard, about 1/2 inch below was gooey salty stuff - pretty interesting.

Ah, our little oasis in the desert... Just a few palm trees and a hot spring in the middle of nowhere.

Life is good...
Headed back to Southern California, found a gorgeous canyon to fly up. You can't really tell, but the ground was covered with wildflowers. We landed here and explored for a few... the Super Cub is awesome. But the pilot is even better. :)
Shaun found a lake and did a little Super-Cub-skiing :). Another successful adventure and a fun trip!

Shaun Lunt - Extraordinaire :)

Ok, so I have to toot Shaun's horn for a minute - because he would never do it himself. Coolest thing! Shaun and his photography are in the May 2008 Issue of The Smithsonian - Air & Space Magazine! You can't see the photography online (oddly enough) so go check it out when you're wandering through the grocery store. The article is called "School of Hard Rocks". Also, if you want to see more, go look at his Super Cub adventures in Alaska at
http://www.shaunlunt.typepad.com/
He is an amazing pilot and photographer - just ask The Smithsonian! :)

April Fool's Day

I pulled April Foolio's Day on the 2nd this year - everybody would have been too suspecting otherwise. I actually DID have a hair appointment - but only cut off about 4 inches. The wig store helped me elaborate. It was great - everybody was very diplomatic and kind. I now know that I can't trust anybody... ;)

Southern Utah - March 2008

Shaun and I met in St. George for one more March adventure of biking, hiking, flying, and shooting stuff.

Shaun biking Gooseberry Mesa - all I know is that it's too hard for the likes of me...

Southern Utah redrock... did I mention I love it?

Shaun landed the Super Cub in some really cool places... I'm sure none of them were illegal.
We landed on the top of a butte and found some rocks that were patiently waiting to be trundled...

... we obliged.

We flew out to the desert and decided it was time to shoot some stuff...
Shaun's targets (radishes, we're eco-friendly)...

MY target... (little bigger, but again, eco-friendly).

I swear - the guy never misses...

Yep - Bought a gun. It's a Kahr .40 and I love it.
Rainy weather grounded us so we naturally turned to our favorite amusement - shootin stuff. We determined that fruit was no longer exciting enough and hit the dollar store for some 'targets'. Shaun decided that we needed a big remote controlled truck so we could have a 'moving target'. By the way, the dollar store doesn't actually sell many things that are a dollar.
We set up our lawn decor, ceramic frogs, exploding soda cans, etc...

Die bird, Die... Shaun is a ridiculously good shot. The bird never had a chance...

S. California - March 08

Headed to Anza Borrego...

All of these pics were taken with the iPhone - so photo quality isn't the highest! Shaun and I headed to the desert to see some wildflowers and caught some gorgeous scenery on the way!

Hmmm... look at that, more gorgeous scenery... Isn't he adorable?

We flew through some mountains and came upon this lake. It was situated in a little valley in the tops of the mountains. I actually have no idea where we were - but wowsah, it was pretty!

Beautiful, huh...

This is our destination, Anza Borrego. The desert wildflowers were in bloom in a gorgeous purple.

Shaun and I ventured out to do a bit of rock climbing at sunset somewhere near Riverside. It was a perfect eve... watched the sun set up on the rocks... ate some grapes and chatted about life and love. I feel blessed to have him.

I headed South and met up with Bec, Jared and kiddies in San Diego. Em and Ky found burying stuff and burying people to be great fun. Ky ran down to the ocean to go get "his feet wet" and took a total face plant into the waves - drenched from head to toe and covered in sand. I'll admit it, I'm not the most supportive Auntie, I couldn't even begin to console him because of my gut-wrenching laughter at his poor little expense. :)

Emma in mid-tirade with me for taking her picture while she was sitting in "time out" for splashing.

After leaving the Chisholm family, I hiked around San Diego with my dogs and ended up at Seal Cove in La Jolla. I used to live down the street so it was a fun walk down Memory Lane.

I happened upon an 'illegal' dog park and somehow wandered into the underground world of doggie parties. I guess these guys meet up every night and chill with each other and their dogs. On Friday evening's they all bring food and wine and get drunk with each other and their dogs. Jax, Chaui and I hung out and talked for a while, then bailed before the police came to issue $350 tickets per dog for the 'illegal' dog meeting. Shortly thereafter, we filled up the car with ridiculously expensive gas, loaded up, and started our trek back to the frozen tundra's of SLC (after a brief and clandestine stay in a 'no pet' hotel in Mesquite). And thus concludes the March adventure to California. Stay tuned... April's adventures look to be a doosey!