A Personal Loss

While Carol Lynn and I were at West Yellowstone I read on my phone that a student had passed away. When I opened it and saw who it was I was stunned. Isaiah Quinlan, a former Vision Conference employee, had died at age 26 from an aneurysm,, leaving a young wife and 4 month old baby. Isaiah was a special young man, outstanding because of his perserverence and humility rather than his exceptional natural talents. He was so teachable, always striving to improve, taking feedback openly and pushing forward, knowing he'd probably never be the best but wanting to be the best he could be. His funeral was an amazing spiritual experience. His mother, Bishop and Pres Clark spoke. His mother spoke of how he was not athletic so didn't participate in sports in his younger years but in high school took on Cross Country Running. However, "he ran like a duck". His mother pointed that out to him and explained how he was supposed to run. Being the humble young man that he was, he listened and worked for a year to learn to run normally, then went on to set and achieve goals, going from consistently dead last to a healthy middle.

I remember when I hired him that I was a little unsure as to how he would relate to the students but felt we needed a little diversity. His humility, positive, happy spirit and determination to succeed made him one of the most lovable facilitators to us all. I am happy for Isaiah. He has completed his earth-life successfully, but I feel great sorrow for his wife, Holly, and baby, Lucy. It will be a tough road for them to do the same. I wrote something for a booklet that will be given to his wife which I will try to attach here. It makes me once again feel how we must treasure every relationship while we can and think again about the blessing in my own life of his beautiful example of humility, diligence, and gratitude. I'll miss him.