Last week was a blur, and I apologize if I missed any promises I made to you (I know I did forget a church duty I signed up for and probably a list of other things). It was with such a great shock that on Monday we received terrible news about the loss of a great friend, Ryan Arnold. Ryan committed the greatest act one can do in his life, giving up his own for another. Ryan’s older brother, Chad had been diagnosed with a fatal liver disease and was told he needed a liver transplant in order to survive. Ryan and his other immediate family members were tested to see if any of their livers were a match. Ryan turned out to be the best match, and Ryan didn’t hesitate for one minute to do what it took to save his brother’s life. The surgery was scheduled not long after. Ryan and his wife Shannon traveled to Colorado for the surgery which was scheduled last Thursday. Both men got through the surgery as planned and even showed positive progress the couple of days following. However, for some reason Ryan took a turn for the worse on Saturday night/early Sunday morning and went into cardiac arrest. I’m unsure of all the details, but after his resuscitation Ryan no longer had any brain activity. Ryan was officially deceased on Monday afternoon. The details of his passing are written in these 2 articles, Arnold remembered for family and Dr. Ryan Arnold

I cannot begin to describe how I felt after learning this news. A flurry of emotions went through and continue to plague my mind. We saw the Arnolds just over a month ago when we visited and stayed with them in their hometown as part of our SD/UT trip. They are the sweetest family you could ever meet and have always tried to include us in their lives even when we all get so busy. We visited them when they lived in Nashville, TN while Ryan was attending Orthodontics school, and we also traveled with them to the Black Hills for a week-long trip while the guys were in dental school together. The Arnolds also helped us to get a taste of a Watertown winter when we visited them right before Christmas in 2008. Ryan and Mike’s hunting and fishing history goes as far back as practically the minute they realized they were both avid hunters/fishermen. The Arnolds have 3 beautiful sons, Graham, Owen, and Oliver, ages 5, 4, and 18 months.

We traveled back to Watertown, SD to attend the funeral on Monday. A couple of other dental school buddies and a hunting buddy caravanned with us from Minnesota to South Dakota on Sunday afternoon to stay at another dental school friend’s cabin close to Watertown. It was actually great to catch up with those guys; I’m just so sad it had to be under these circumstances. The service was beautiful but also made us realize how much Ryan was loved after seeing the 500+ people in attendance. Many stories were told about Ryan as a person and about his life, and Mike and I really did agree with all that was said about him. Ryan had a way of making you feel like you were his best friend that you knew forever.

Mike and I have shed a lot of tears since learning of Ryan’s death. It seems inconceivable that such an honorable man doing such a courageous act could have his life taken away like this. Everyone has said though that even if Ryan knew the outcome beforehand that he still would have followed through with the surgery to save his brother’s life. That’s the kind of man Ryan was. He leaves behind an amazing legacy in his beautiful wife Shannon and his three sons. I hope they have the comfort that they need at this time and pray for their healing.

ETA: If you are interested in helping to support the Arnold family during their time of need, there has been a trust set up for the boys that anyone can contribute to at RyanArnold.org. I know they will appreciate any contributions made.