Douglas Brent Brunelle

 

 

(April 27, 1943 – March 7, 2011)

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DOUGLAS BRUNELLE

Douglas Brunelle, age 68 of Arizona City, AZ formerly Dunseith, died Monday in a Grand Forks hospital. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday at 10:00 A.M. in the St. Michael’s Church of Dunseith. Burial will be in the St. Mary’s Cemetery of rural Dunseith. A wake will be held on Monday beginning at 4:00 P.M. with a prayer services at 8:00 P.M. in the church.

Douglas Brunelle, a son of William and Edna (Morin) Brunelle, was born on April 27,1943 at Belcourt. He was raised in the Belcourt community where he attended school and graduated in 1961. He served in the US Army from 1966 to 1967. In June 1972 he was married to Shirley Peltier at Fargo. They have three sons.

Douglas had a wide range of experience, primarily working as Tribal Housing Director on several Indian reservations in South Dakota. Nebraska and Arizona. Working his way up the ladder, he retired from his last position as Project Manager for commercial development on the Gila River Indian Community at Sacaton, AZ.

Douglas gathered many friends along his life’s adventure encompassing most of the western United States, from California Redwoods to Nebraska and Montana to Arizona. Distance kept him from face-to-face visits, but the telephone kept his friends close.

Leanna Hosmer’s Report

Kristopher’s Update

 

Hi Everyone,
Just talked with Kristopher for an extended period of time and got a little more details from him besides, “I’m safe”. He had been able to recharge his computer & phone – They had been able to get some power for a couple of hours. Everyone is charging up their batteries. Tomorrow the water is being shut off, so they are filling up bathtubs, pots & pans, etc. He is feeling very blessed to be a part of an amazing community of people at the Ayashi Chuo church.
In terms of where Ayashi is in relation to Sendai and all the footage we see on the news – basically it’s divided by some high hills. Ayashi (where Kristopher is) is directly behind the hills that we are seeing on TV. The buildings in that town are standing fine. Today – people tried to go check in on their jobs – but things have not kicked back into “business as usual” by any means. Kristopher continues to stay with the Sasaki family on the seminary campus. It sounds like there are several of them sleeping in the sanctuary, cooking together, playing games, etc. Yesterday Kristopher was out playing “capture the flag” with some kids. He feels that his role now is to hang out and be available to talk with people, play with the kids, etc. He has also been trying to visit and make contact with his students. 1 of them he hadn’t heard from until today when she walked to the church after having been stuck behind a panel in her office in Sendai. Almost everyone he knows, works with, teaches has been or has a loved one affected by the tsunami.
A rescue organization from Tokyo has been in contact with the church in Ayashi – as a possible place for them to use their facility as a home base; sleeping, eating, etc, since Ayashi is the closest, safe town to the major disaster zone. So – they are making plans to accommodate this team of rescuers and will be available to assist them.
There is concern as there is another major quake expected to hit within the next 48 hours. Kristopher says that there are constant earthquakes and he never feels like he can relax. Sleeping at night is hard, as you can hear the earthquake coming in the quiet of the night. In the 45 minutes that we talked to him, he experienced 3 earthquakes. They’re always wondering if the quakes are going to be another big one or not…..a little unsettling, but he tries not to think too far ahead, and keeps his focus on the present circumstance.
He’s been back to his apartment several times to get his food, clothes, etc – but does not feel safe staying there or sleeping there. He is really thankful for the community of people that he can be with 24/7. They are gracious and readily available to help anyone in need. Victor & I are so thankful to hear that he is in a relatively “normal” situation. Kristopher does not feel in immediate danger, and feels that his job is to stay there. He also does not feel like he/they are in danger of radiation at this point. So – no, he will not be coming home. (not that he has the option @ present). Even if he could leave, he feels called to stay.
He hopes to start updating bits and pieces on his blog as he has service & power. So Victor & I will rest easy tonight and sleep peacefully, knowing that he is in a good place. Thanks again for your prayers.
Side Bar Story Line of Billy:
He’s finally been able to talk to his friend Billy who’s vacation plans to see Kristopher have been diverted, when the earthquake hit 35 minutes before his plane was to land. Billy is making the best of this situation and will stay in the Tokyo area to just hang out and see what he can see before he flies back to Seattle. Billy has been able to meet my brother – James living in Yokohama, and he will be connecting with another Japanese couple – Toru & Hiroko. Hiroko used to live with the Kraakmo’s back in the early 80’s when she was a student at Shoreline Community College. Esther Sunde has remained friends with her and her husband – and contacted them.
OK – I think that’s it for now.
Love,
Leanna
p.s. – Kristopher just posted “un devastating pictures of earthquake” on his facebook to prove that he’s safe.