Mt. Rainier ranger called 'hero' who died protecting others

[ellisonz]

Photo: Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, right, embraces National Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis before a memorial service for slain park ranger Margaret Anderson. Credit: Elaine Thompson / Pool Photo

January 10, 2012 | 4:44 pm
-- Kim Murphy in Seattle

To the sad fanfare of bugles and bagpipes, the National Park Service on Tuesday remembered the fallen park ranger who on New Year's Day placed her vehicle -- and ultimately her life -- in the path of a heavily armed gunman who was speeding up into Mt. Rainier National Park.

In a memorial attended by thousands of law enforcement agents, park service employees, Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire and U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, ranger Margaret Anderson was credited with saving the lives of more than 125 people recreating that day near a visitors center, the only possible destination at the end of a road that Anderson, in her last act on Earth, safely barricaded.

Anderson, a 34-year-old mother of two toddlers, died when gunman Benjamin Colton Barnes opened fire on her vehicle and that of another park ranger who sped in to help.

"What you saw last Sunday was not an anomaly. That was Margaret," Anderson's father, New Jersey Lutheran pastor Paul Kritsch, said in one of several eulogies offered at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Wash.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/2012/01/rainier-park-ranger-margaret-anderson-memorial.html



R.I.P. Margaret Anderson - "The Thin Green Line"

[ellisonz]

1. Kick for the NPS and Rangers everywhere. n/t

[lpbk2713]

2. The truly sad part of the story is ...

her daughters are age 1 and 3. They will probably never remember their Mommy.
They will only know her from family pics and videos.


I hope her killer never breathes free air again.

[ellisonz]

3. I agree...

I don't think being told that your mother was a hero is sufficient to actually having your mother.

That man had no good intent on his mind - the impression that I get is that he didn't have any sort of survival gear in his vehicle, just guns and ammo; his intention was clearly to kill either law enforcement officers or members of the general public. They haven't said too much as I imagine the investigation into his past is ongoing.

In Anderson’s hometown of Eatonville, flags fly at half-staff, at the high school, post office and town hall.

Neighbor April Parker said, "It breaks my heart to know that he has lost his wife and they have lost their mom," referring to Anderson’s husband and two daughters, ages 4 and 2.

Margaret Anderson, nee Kritsch, married Eric Anderson in October 2005. The information below is taken from the couple's wedding announcement.

The couple met while they both worked as park rangers at Bryce National Park in Utah. Margaret attended Kansas State University where she earned a B.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife Biology in 1999.

http://www.kwgn.com/news/nationworld/kcpq-bio-margaret-anderson-20120102,0,3798932.story

[malaise]

4. Her killer died

from exposure to teh elements - hypothermia heard.

Really sad that her two kids will never really know their mommy

[lpbk2713]

5. I stand corrected in that regard.

I had forgotten that part.

[ellisonz]

9. Hypothermia...

...and drowning in a creek. Not that his death in anyway ameliorates the suffering inflicted.

[lumberjack_jeff]

6. Absolutely correct and not hyperbole. RIP Ranger Anderson. n/t

[Brickbat]

7. True service. I hope her family can heal and be well.

[jimlup]

8. Rangers do important and difficult work

And for very little. We will miss you Margaret!

[ellisonz]

13. I wish we had more of them.

They are essential to this country.

[TwilightGardener]

10. Sad. Pointless loss of a decent, helpful person and mother.

[ellisonz]

12. Pointless indeed...

[lumberjack_jeff]

15. I'm convinced that her actions saved many lives

although she may not have known it at the time.

It's tragic, but I'm not sure I'd describe it as pointless.

[ellisonz]

16. No doubt.

I think pointless is meant in the sense though that someone like Benjamin Barnes should have never been allowed to own firearms. IMHO we've got to tighten our gun control laws. Just pointing out why it's a "pointless" death, in that nothing is likely to change.

It is unclear when and how Barnes obtained the weapons, but it probably was not difficult. Washington has among the most lax gun laws in the country, requiring neither training nor permits before a purchase. The state does not compel registration and allows individuals without a serious criminal record or history of mental illness to obtain permits to carry a concealed weapon.

There is no way to know whether tougher gun restrictions would have prevented Barnes from obtaining his weapons. But it is beyond dispute that easy access to firearms can quickly turn a simple argument or difficult situation into a deadly confrontation. And this violence is not limited to the proverbial mean streets.

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/opinion/53232335-82/barnes-park-weapon-assault.html.csp
He was involved in an ongoing custody dispute, had been described as combustible and dangerous by his ex-girlfriend, and had a restraining order requested against him:
http://www.thenewstribune.com/2012/01/01/1966242/suspect-in-mount-rainier-shooting.html

Not really looking for a full on gun control argument, just suggesting why I think it was "pointless" in a broader context

[lumberjack_jeff]

17. understood. the bigger discussion is probably more appropriate elsewhere nt

[ellisonz]

11. Kick.

[burrowowl]

14. K&R