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    • i got some bad news from starfail last night. shady, who i had hiked with for 4 or 5 days in tennesseeand met again when they passed through new york. took his own life several weeks ago . theres a picture of him with homebrew, starfail and pepe in my wb gallery"pepe shows up for breakfast."hes on the right.
      good guy, didnt get to know him very well, but warm and friendly, no sign of any demons.
      it is a selfish act i will never be able to wrap my brain around.
      my prayers go out to his family, and all who knew him.
      its all good
    • ah man, sorry to hear that HB. I had a friend who did the same thing about 7-8 years ago...still baffles me. He was a Marine with PTSD, alcoholism..and who knows what else. I worked and ran with this fella for years...ready for this. We had the same Birthday, that's right, tomorrow is/was Georgies b-day too aka "Lock and Load" We had been hangin out for a couple years, and then once while driving back from a fireworks show we had just shot off, he say's So when were you born, I say feb 1st...he say number one, and I'm looking at him with two heads cause I just told him that...he say No and points to himself...Number one...me too. It was like we were already two peas in a pod, and this was just to over the top...Crazy world man. Thanks for letting me tell that story, again sorry to hear about your friend. That Sucks.
    • Sad news. You can never know or tell what prompts one to take their own life. Lost a friend back in 10th grade this way. One day he seemed happy and free as the rest of us, then gone the next. Never saw it coming, the thought never even crosses your mind. So very sad.
      Changes Daily→ ♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫ ♪♫♪♫♪♫ ← Don't blame me. It's That Lonesome Guitar.
    • Re:Re: sad news

      I understand the frustration with the most selfish act a person can do ("it is all about me with no regard to how this impacts those around you)". But on the more positive side we can all make an effort to be there for people when they are feeling down. I know each individual has to live their own life and make their own decisions. But at the same time hopefully we can also be there for people when they need someone, similar to HB's family concept.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • I used to have the same views on suicide that most have. Over the years those views have changed. I have struggled with depression all of my life, even since the first years in grade school. For me it is just part of life. I cope. Have enjoyed great successes despite it and felt the lash more than "regular" people when things don't always work out.

      I do not begrudge people who commit suicide. I of course do not celebrate it but I do feel I understand their choice more than most. Trust me when I say it is not a coward's way out nor is it done to spite anyone around them.

      Suicide is not selfish. Suicide is private.
    • Blacksmith wrote:

      I used to have the same views on suicide that most have. Over the years those views have changed. I have struggled with depression all of my life, even since the first years in grade school. For me it is just part of life. I cope. Have enjoyed great successes despite it and felt the lash more than "regular" people when things don't always work out.

      I do not begrudge people who commit suicide. I of course do not celebrate it but I do feel I understand their choice more than most. Trust me when I say it is not a coward's way out nor is it done to spite anyone around them.

      Suicide is not selfish. Suicide is private.

      Unfortunately one of the biggest killers of the young in both our countries.
      I've always tried to stress to my kids that life has ups and downs. If you let the downs get to you, you miss so many ups.
      Resident Australian, proving being a grumpy old man is not just an American trait.
    • OzJacko wrote:

      Blacksmith wrote:

      I used to have the same views on suicide that most have. Over the years those views have changed. I have struggled with depression all of my life, even since the first years in grade school. For me it is just part of life. I cope. Have enjoyed great successes despite it and felt the lash more than "regular" people when things don't always work out.

      I do not begrudge people who commit suicide. I of course do not celebrate it but I do feel I understand their choice more than most. Trust me when I say it is not a coward's way out nor is it done to spite anyone around them.

      Suicide is not selfish. Suicide is private.

      Unfortunately one of the biggest killers of the young in both our countries.
      I've always tried to stress to my kids that life has ups and downs. If you let the downs get to you, you miss so many ups.


      Yes, it is tragic that so many youths make rash choices when for them they do not even know who they are yet.
    • Created by Travis Johnston on January 31, 2014JACKSONVILLE, FLFunerals & Memorials 0 This page has been developed in order to raise funds for a Memorial that will commemorate Zach (Shady) Adamson and both his service to our country and the adventure of his lifetime. All proceeds will be used to have a memorial stone made that will be placed at his favorite spot on the Appalachian Trail, McAfees Knob in Virginia. Further proceeds will fund the hike from Georgia to Virginia and also pay his family's way in order for them to be present and a part of the dedication to Zach. Any and all extra funds that are raised will be given to The Warrior Hike Project's "walk off the war'. (warriorhike.com) This is an organization that focuses on helping to ease the suffering of veterans with PTSD and have offered to help by supplying gear for this trip.
      Zach was known as a genuine, lovable, fun-loving individual by all. He served honorably in 1st Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment and deployed in support of both Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. He was an excellent Ranger, and an even better friend. It is truly a loss that he is no longer with us.
      During Zach's time in the Rangers he befriended an individual who had always dreamed of hiking the Appalachian Trail. Tragically, this individual was fatally wounded during a deployment in Afghanistan, but Zach had not forgotten his dream. Zach continued to serve with the 75th Ranger Regiment until his ETS date, at which point he had set a new goal for himself. Zach's goal, was to complete a thru-hike of the entire Appalachian Trail. All 2175 miles of it. As Zach's departure date last year neared he prepared and focused for the journey ahead, and on April 1, 2013 Zach took his first step on the AT. Over the course of several months Zach met, befriended, and influenced many people along the trail. For him, it was the adventure of a lifetime, and exactly what he needed after his time in the Military. All the while, never losing thought of his fallen brother. And after days, weeks, and months, Zach reached the summit of Mt. Katahdin on October 4, 2013, completing the Appalachian Trail.
      A special thanks to all of Zach's/Shady's "trail friends", Ranger buddies, family, friends, and The Warrior Hike Project for making all this possible.

      His Obituary is as follows:

      Zachary Daniel Adamson, age 24 of Georgetown, Ohio died January 9, 2014 at his residence. He was a salesman for Adamson Fire Protection in Mt.Orab, Ohio and a United States Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom War Veteran where he earned several medals, including the Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with two campaign stars, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal with campaign star, Army Service Ribbon. He unselfishly served four years and ten months with distinction as an Airborne Ranger in the United States Army, including one tour in Iraq and three tours in Afghanistan. Zach “Shady” had incredible drive which helped him to recently complete the Appalachian Trail. He was an energetic and fun-loving young man with a big heart that didn’t know a stranger and would do anything to help someone. He made lasting impacts on people and on this world. He will be greatly missed by his family and friends. He was born March 21, 1989 in Cincinnati, Ohio the son of Steve and Rebecca (McNutt) Adamson of Mt.Orab, Ohio.

      In addition to his parents, Mr. Adamson is survived by one brother - Jesse Adamson and fiancé Brianna Householder of Highland Heights, Kentucky; one sister - Ashley Massie and husband James of Georgetown, Ohio; two nieces - Katherine and Brooke Massie; maternal grandparents - Dwayne and Janice McNutt of Gibson City, Illinois; paternal grandparents - Danny and Minnie Adamson and Roland and Fonda Barr all of Georgetown, Ohio and many other family members and friends.


      RIP Zach/Shady

      Rangers Lead the Way!


      http://www.gofundme.com/6lmaas
      its all good
    • starfail sent me an email today i just have to share with you:

      Hi friends,

      I hope this e-mail finds you well. The reason I am writing this email is because last month on January 9, one of my best friends took his own life. Heartbroken, I was talking with Abby and asked her "what do I do? How do I make this right?" Naturally, there is no answer. But her advice to me was to tell his story. And so here it is (the abridged version).
      As all of you know, I hiked the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine last year. A little ways outside of Demascus, Virginia (at mile 456.7 to be exact), a handsome young man walked up to me, Hiker boy, and Homebrew while we were eating breakfast at Abingdon Shelter. We asked him where the hell he came from, given that the last shelter was 20 miles back and it was only 8am. He said he had run out of food, and had hiked through the night, and intended to walk to Demascus before noon to resupply. He then asked us if any of us had a bowl, given that he had that wonderful substance that hikers love to smoke, but no means of doing so. We shared a bowl before he hiked away listening to Mumford & Sons (which was the only music he had on his phone for 1,500 miles), and I knew we were destined to be friends.
      Leaving Demascus, he invited me to hike out of town with him, after we stopped for an icecream cone, naturally. I don't remember what we talked about, but I remember never hiking so fast as I did trying to keep up with this attractive piece of "hiker trash," as we like to call ourselves. From there, we hiked 940 miles together to Bear Mountain, New York. During this time, we talked about all sorts of things. Given that my mom works with veterans, he told me he had just gotten out of the Army Rangers, where he served 3 tours in Afghanistan and 1 in Iraq, and he was out here to clear his mind. He was blind in one eye and deaf in one ear because he was shot in the face during combat. He also had a traumatic brain injury from the explosion that caused him to go deaf. He told me that he was hiking the trail because one of his fellow Rangers and best friends had died in combat, and had always dreamed of hiking the Appalachian Trail. He told us that he thought about suicide from time to time as well, among other PTSD issues that he battled.
      We shared so many of my life's very happiest memories. For weeks, we'd finish each day and look at each other and marvel at how this day could possibly be better than the last. We'd exclaim "NEW. FAVORITE. DAY" everyday for weeks. One night, after everyone had gone to bed, a terrifying lightening storm hit while we were in an open field in a metal framed tent on top of a giant mountain, so he put on a magic show for me with a miniature deck of cards I had been carrying. I can't even remember what we were laughing about, but we laughed so hard we were crying, which made us laugh even harder. At one point, it was so painful to laugh that all I could manage was strange laughter-attempts while massaging my cheeks back to a straight face. We laughed ourselves to sleep, and the next morning, we woke up to the most beautiful sunrise I have ever experienced, with the clouds completely filling the valley below us and the sun rising brilliantly over a neighboring mountain. It was pure joy.
      He also helped me overcome one of my greatest fears, night hiking (and darkness in general). We did this by begrudgingly night hiking in the pouring rain in Pennsylvania after a 25 mile day. I cried like a baby, but he stayed with me, despite my embarrassing 1 mile an hour pace and my annoying complaints, talking me through my fears, and reminding me how powerful and inspiring the night can be.
      On my birthday, one of the last days we spent together, he told me I was beautiful and that he'd love me forever. Leaving Bear Mountain was the last time I ever saw him. He had to leave to attend a funeral of a fellow Army Ranger, the third that had taken his own life that year. Shady would be the fourth.
      While at Shady's funeral, his team leader told us that he was going to thru-hike this year in honor of Shady. He said he was going to raise money so other veterans could find solace in the woods like all of us have. I have included the link at the bottom, and would really appreciate it if you could spread the word far and wide. Each day, 22 veterans commit suicide. This number did not mean a whole lot to me until I saw Shady in a box being put into the ground forever. And all for what??

      http://www.gofundme.com/6lmaas

      I realize that my last exchange with Shady wasn't one that I'm proud of. We were at different places in our lives, and and we agreed that we each needed to "hike our own hikes." But I will never forget the miles of smiles we shared, and the lessons that he taught me. You never know when the last time you will see someone will be. So I want to tell you all that I love and appreciate all of you, and am overwhelmingly grateful for the joy you have all brought to my life. Thank you.

      One love,

      Stevie "Starfail" Uribe
      its all good
    • I'm sorry for the loss of your friend.

      I never met him and only know briefly of Starfail through Whiteblaze and her thru video but this still hits close to home and tugs at my heart.
      “Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.” - T. S. Eliot