September 3rd, 2015 - Larry Lindberg was enjoying an incredible afternoon on the river, boating with his beloved son, Jon.  With Jon watching, Larry took off one last time when he hit a log and flipped his boat, dying instantly on impact.

Larry Lindberg lived and died exactly the way he wanted, on his boat!!

Larry Lindberg

 ♥    Born March 26th, 1943

 ♥    Father, brother, friend, avid boater

 ♥    Electrician, IBEW Local 292

        Service/branch United States Army

        Private First Class (PFC)

        Years of Service 1961 - 1967  

  ♥  Lived most of his life in Coon Rapids, MN

 💔Sadly left us on September 3, 2015

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Since I was a young boy, my dad would take me boating with him.  Boating was dad's passion.  Eventually, dad bought me a boat too and we would spend allot of time on the water together every summer in Minnesota.  That is, until that fateful day which ended so tragically.  News reports got it wrong.  It was not just his friend in the other boat, it was me, his only son who had desperately struggled to pull his father's lifeless and bloodied body from the river that day.  But it was too late.  Despite my efforts and those of emergency responders, my father did not survive.

 

Next comes my post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which I've been dealing with this since the accident.  PTSD is a mental health condition that is triggered by a terrifying event.  Symptoms include flashbacks, nightmares, severe anxiety, and uncontrollable thoughts about the event.

 

Since I know first hand the effects that PTSD can have on one's life following a tragic event, I can only imagine how difficult the struggle must be for people in service work, such as our veterans and emergency responders. 

 

To the people that tried to help save my dad that day, Thank You So Much.  I am forever grateful to you all, and I am committed to giving back in some way. 

 

I do see a professional to help me in my daily struggle with PTSD.  One thing that I have felt strongly about is that if my dad had survived that day, he would have gotten his boat fixed.  So I believe that fixing his boat would help me heal to some extent; at least I wouldn't have to relive the event each time that I open the garage and see his damaged boat and I could have a sense of pride in taking care of the one thing that dad was passionate about.   

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So, my mission is to raise money to fix the boat and to raise funds to donate to a local organization that helps veterans struggling with PTSD by providing them with service dogs; Helping Paws of Hopkins Minnesota.     

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~ Jon Lindberg, only son of Larry Lindberg

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