Thanks for your expressions of support for my family and me. This has been the most difficult time of our lives. No one can be prepared for the sudden loss of a child. Even though Kristofor was a young man of 28 years, he was still our child as well as a brother, a nephew, a cousin, an uncle and a friend. Infinite sorrow does not begin to describe the pain of his loss.
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Graduation from Basic Infantry training. |
Although Kris died fighting for his country, he was not a flag waving ultra-patriot, at least not on the surface. He had ideals like every young person , but also he had values, honor and character.
He acquired these attributes well before he joined the Army, but the Army, especially the Special Operations units, seems to attract young men of similar strengths. How impressive it was to see the bond between the young Rangers the Army sent to Kris’s memorial service. Since all members of Kris’s battalion were deployed, 21 Rangers from the First Battalion served as his honor guard. None knew Kris personally, but all knew him as a brother Ranger because of the similar experiences they had shared. These experiences serve to bond the young men personally as well as to the unit as a whole. When going into harm’s way, it’s the closeness of this bond, the knowledge that my buddy is depending on me (and I on him) that motivates these men. The teamwork and the inherent trust of their brother Rangers are the factors that build the atmosphere of high character and honor that prevails within the Ranger Battalions and other Special Operations units.
The Army’s selection process for Ranger duty serves to nurture these nebulous attributes of honor and character. Much personal sacrifice goes into being a Ranger --- desire must be extreme. For example, of the 219 Airborne qualified soldiers with Kris who volunteered for Ranger Indoctrination, a three week course to eliminate those whose desire is not extreme enough, resulted in only 21 Airborne soldiers completing the course to become Rangers. No man failed, but 199 requested to drop out; hence, the term "elite unit". The brotherhood built on shared common experiences grew. Constant training and repeated exercises with the members of the team further contributed to strengthen the concept of teamwork, of protecting your buddy.
So, it was with this spirit that Kris and his squad entered into combat. Had he been on the ground with fellow Rangers, doing the job he was trained to do, he might well be here today.
The Army only became part of Kris’s life in 1999 when he decided to go back to college. Since his brother had always had a positive experience in the Army, Kris decided to investigate the ROTC program at the University of Montana. As a full time student, Kris needed the additional cash the Army could supply. As a philosophy major, Kris could graduate in two years and receive a commission as a second lieutenant in the Army Reserves. He excelled as an ROTC cadet astonishing the instructors with his physical training scores. Academically he also did extremely well, but concluded that he wanted to get into the special operations side of the Army. As an officer, he would have to wait until he was a Captain, (about four years) before he could be considered for Special Forces; but as an enlisted soldier, he could apply years sooner. He decided that the Ranger Regiment was the place to start his special operations training. Suspending his college career, he enlisted-- finishing Basic the week before Thanksgiving of 2000. Airborne training was next; it was completed before Christmas leave. Then, the challenge began --- Ranger Indoctrination.
Sometime after his first two years of college Kris developed an interest in wilderness survival and nature. He discovered Tom Brown’s Tracker School in Asbury, New Jersey where Tom and his instructors teach tracking, nature awareness and wilderness survival. An explanation of the Tracker School is needed. As a child, Tom Brown was greatly influenced by his best friend’s grandfather, an Apache Indian elder, medicine man and scout. The boys would accompany "Grandfather" into the woods of the Pine Barrens and learned the art of survival, how to track and the ways of nature. Tom Brown has since authored 16 books and established the school to teach and perpetuate the philosophy, methods and techniques of the Apache scout. Although Kris never directly said it, I would tell people that his ambition was to become an Apache scout. I would then explain about Tom Brown and the Tracker School.
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After the "survival" campout! Fall 1998. |
From the seven classes Kris took, he acquired the ability to move silently and unseen through the forest; he learned the means of concealment that allows one to become part of one’s surroundings; he learned animal tracking and track identification; and learned survival skills:
finding water and food, building shelter and fire; trapping, making tools and primitive tanning. There are debris huts from Pennsylvania to Ohio to Montana that he constructed and used that are testimony to his dedication and to his commitment to nature. He did this as a vegan vegetarian. In addition to not eating meat, Vegans don’t eat dairy products or food with dairy or animal ingredients (including honey), nor do they wear clothing made from animal products (wool and leather). He and his long time girl friend, Erin Lorch, the sister of a close, high school friend, adhered strictly to these beliefs for a number of years, but due to the need to stay healthy and fit (the Army vegetarian diet was not sufficient as a Ranger), Kris reverted to the more conventional diet as did Erin for similar health reasons.
Whenever Kris came home to Doylestown, whether to take another Tom Brown class or just to see Mom and Dad, he would spend time in Peace Valley Park honing his stalking and camouflaging skills. To his chagrin, he found that some of the animals in the Park were two-legged. They were either very noisy tending to frighten the four-legged variety away or very, very quiet, not wanting to draw attention to themselves. The quiet ones would find what they thought was a secluded spot only to be startled by the thump of Kris abandoning his tree perch or by a disembodied voice out of nowhere suggesting that this spot was taken. Direct confrontation was the least recommended procedure; the stealthy retreat was often better, but often proved impossible.
In the early fall of 1998 Kris took me into the mountains along the Appalachian Trail near the Delaware Water Gap. Halfway on our four-hour hike we stumbled upon some wild life communing with nature in a firebreak --- a wide-open area cut in the trees to inhibit the spread of a forest fire. These were the two-legged variety in plain view of the trail we hiked on. The Appalachian Trail runs from Georgia to Maine for over two thousand miles and is considered very public. The indiscrete couple, focusing so intently on themselves that they didn’t notice us, continued on as we passed by following the blazes on the trees that marked the trail. Kris and I wondered how many other hikers had the same encounter and resisted reaching into the couple’s pickup truck and hitting the horn button. We hiked another two hours until we found a suitable campsite. Our provisions consisted of a canteen of water, a blanket and pocketknife. Our optional provisions were cornmeal for Kris and a camera for me. I, of course, recorded the "survival" outing while he prepared ash cakes for us to feast on. About 3 times during the night we awoke to forage for firewood and brush off the spiders. It was cold! There was no need to build a debris hut because it wasn’t cold enough (according to my guide). Our breakfast the next morning was ash cakes again baked on the hot coals of the fire.
Where the Delaware River cuts through the mountains the Trail descends to civilization --- a town in this instance that had a bakery with many freshly made baked goods. This was a fine place for a carnivore, but had few tasty items for vegans. Kris found a Snapple while I devoured milk and a coffee cake made with lots of dairy. He didn’t seem hungry --- he must have eaten tree bark and leaves on the hike back to the staging area that morning.
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Portrait for Mom |
This has been a quick look at a very complex, warm and sensitive young man who loved life and loved nature. He could discuss abstract philosophical concepts with university professors or drink beer with his buddy Luke and crack jokes, closing a different Key West bar every night of their vacation. He was not a fanatical, love-it-or-leave-it American. He was a quiet patriot. He was ordinary in so many ways, but special in so many other ways. He knew he was loved and was able to share his love.
We miss him so much it hurts. With time I’m told the pain will dull, but the memory will always be sharp of my three-week old son rooting around my biceps waiting for his Mom and latching onto my skin, sucking so hard that it raised a red welt the size of a quarter. His poor nursing mom!
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Kristofor Scott Stonesifer |
I will also miss one of the most cherished sounds a father hears when his son comes home: "Hello … Dad!"
Again, thank you for your expressions of sympathy and condolence, your prayers and thoughts.
We hope that Kris’s spirit will live on in his new nephew, Kristofor, born on 14 October 2001.
P.S. To those who already have contributed to the Army Emergency Relief, Pentagon Victims’ Fund, thank you. If you have not done so and wish to, please contribute in Kris’s name to the Peace Valley Nature Center. Kris loved to patiently stalk deer at the nature center or, while in plain view, just wait invisibly (with impish delight) for his mom, niece and nephew to find him. The Nature Center is attempting to restore the Elm tree population with a variety that is resistant to Dutch elm disease.
 Rangers lead the way! |
Peace Valley Nature Center |