That One Time My Co-worker Died

One of my favorite Solution Managers, Randy, left to find a new job a year ago or so. I've missed him. He managed to get an internship for his son in our portfolio though. He was the nicest kid, 22 years old.

And then one day he didn’t come to work. No one could reach him. he’s very responsible, so everyone was really worried. His car-pool buddy/mentor/friend went to his house to pick him up and he didn’t answer. Everyone worried all day, and finally they told me the situation in the afternoon.

The emergency number Josh had given them when he started was the home number. Randy and his wife had been living there, but had moved 2 weeks prior to Tennessee for a new job and so Josh was living there alone.

I had Randy on gchat and looked – and sure enough he was online. I explained the situation to Randy and he said he’d figure it out. We waited for a bit, Randy informing us he’d called a neighbor who was going over….

Waiting…

And then Randy says, “He’s gone”.

I thought he wasn’t home.     

He was dead.

The neighbor couldn’t get in so called the police, and they broke the door down. Josh had diatabetes and they found him next to the trash can. The best they can figure, his insulin pump stopped working (it was older) and Josh woke up in the night sick. He usually kept candy next to his bed, but didn’t have any left. So he went to the trashcan hoping to find some leftover food. He made it to the trashcan and passed out, and eventually died.

It was horrible. It was horrible for me, to be the one communicating this to Randy and his wife, and to be the first to find out he was dead.

Brittany Mullen and I wanted to go to the funeral, so did Sharky. Brittany ended up wanting to spend time in Rexburg (that’s where he was from so where the funeral was) so she drove down with her roommate, who also went to BYU-I. 

Sharky is a pilot and owns a Cessna. So he agreed to fly us to the funeral.

I’ve never been in such a small plane before. It was a little unnerving. You don’t feel steady, especially in turbulence. He let me fly. It was so weird and super unnerving. But it was a fun experience and I’m glad I got to go.

The funeral was so sad it was ridiculous. He was incredibly smart and had such a promising future, and his family was so torn up.

Thank goodness for the knowledge of the Gospel and that families are forever. I can’t imagine experiencing loss like that and not having that knowledge.

Love,

Brittney