This story will touch us all...IOWA TORNADO VICTIMS
Scouts praised for enthusiasm, leadership, kindness
Omaha World-Herald
Published on: 06/12/08
AARON EILERTS
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Aaron Eilerts, 14, had endless talents, a good sense of humor and would go above and beyond whatever was asked of him.
"He was the kindest kid you could ever meet," said Dawn Sievertsen, principal of Robert Blue Middle School in Eagle Grove, Iowa.
Aaron was killed in a tornado Wednesday night at a Boy Scout camp near Little Sioux, Iowa. He was a member of Boy Scout Troop 108 in Humboldt, Iowa. He attended the camp to be a youth leader for the Boy Scouts Junior Leaders Training program.
"He was very outgoing and a very friendly kid," said Gerald Davis, scout master of Boy Scout Troop 108. "He would do anything for anybody"
Rob Logsdon, a 15-year-old Boy Scout from Lawton, Iowa, said Aaron was buried beneath the chimney.
The two boys had become friends "pretty fast," at the camp, Logsdon said.
"Aaron and I were in charge of a group of seven other Scouts," Logsdon said. "He was a real good guy."
Aaron recently was runner-up for a character award out of about 40 nominees throughout Iowa.
"He embodied everything scouting stands for," Sievertsen said. "He would start these projects to earn badges, but took them very seriously and would continue them long after he earned the badge."
Whether it was creating brightly-colored pillowcases for patients at local hospitals, making fleece blankets for dogs at the Humane Society or making table centerpieces for the senior dining center in Eagle Grove, Aaron was always doing for others.
"There will be a lot of holes left in the community with his death," Sievertsen said.
Colby Gochanour, 14, will have one of those holes in his heart.
"We were best friends," he said. "He was always there."
The two enjoyed singing show tunes from "Wicked."
"We would be having a serious conversation but if there was a line from a song, we would break into it," he said. "He was a great singer and he adored music."
Especially Elvis.
"He was an Elvis fanatic," Gochanour said. "He had tons of Elvis CDs and I think he had a few Elvis posters in his room."
Aaron even wore a black-and-red Elvis jacket and had visited Graceland a few times.
Aaron, who was an aspiring chef and planned to move to France, performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" at local sporting events when he wasn't on the field himself. He played football, ran cross-country and was in the school band and choir. He also was involved in community and school theaters.
Gochanour said, "He was a great friend."
—Leia Baez
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BEN PETRZILKA
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Ben Petrzilka, who just finished seventh grade at Mary Our Queen Catholic School in Omaha, Neb., was praised Thursday as kind and caring.
Petrzilka, 14, was one of four teens killed Wednesday night when a tornado hit a Boy Scout camp at Little Sioux, Iowa.
"I can tell you so many wonderful things about this kid," Principal Kayleen Wallace said. "He always gave it his best effort. It is a very devastating loss to the school."
Ben's parents are Bryan and Arnell Petrzilka. They have another son, Jackson, a preschooler.
The family belongs to Mary Our Queen parish near 120th Street and West Center Road. The men's club at the church sponsors Troop 448. Ben had been a troop member for three years.
Bryan Petrzilka was a Cub Scout leader when Ben was a Cub, said Mike Kirk, a church member and family friend.
Steve Olson, the scoutmaster, had known Ben for years. Olson was a Cubmaster when Ben became a Cub Scout in second grade.
"Great kid ... a joy to have around ... very well liked," Olson said of Ben. "He was one of those who stood out ... as a natural leader."
Olson said Ben loved the outdoors. The teen spent a lot of time hunting and fishing with his father.
Ben had reached Star rank and was assistant leader of the Ninja Patrol of Troop 448.
"He lived the Scout law," Kirk said.
Olson and two other members of the 42-member troop, Christian Jones, son of Connie Jones, and Zachary Schlegel, son of Gene and Deb Schlegel, were at the Little Sioux camp Wednesday night.
Olson said Jones had some minor injuries and that Schlegel was unhurt.
—Virgil Larson
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JOSH FENNEN
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Clockwise from top left: Sam Thomsen, 13; Josh Fennen, 13; Aaron Eilerts, 14; and Ben Petrzilka, 14.
Josh Fennen was a confident, inquisitive 13-year-old with natural leadership abilities.
"He was a good student, a hard worker, and he was always trying to be creative," said Jeff Alfrey, principal at Andersen Elementary School, where Josh recently finished eighth grade.
Josh died at a Boy Scout camp near Little Sioux, Iowa, on Wednesday night from injuries related to a tornado.
Alfrey wasn't surprised that Josh was at the camp, which focused on leadership training. The boy was adventurous and had a knack for exploring.
"I could see him thriving in the wilderness," Alfrey said. "I could see him being a great leader."
Josh didn't stand out physically. The dark-haired, brown-eyed boy was of average height and build for an eighth grader, Alfrey said. But his inquisitive nature separated him from other students. The principal talked to Josh just before school got out about refining his inventive skills.
"His mind was always working," Alfrey said. "He was always finding something new to do, something to experiment with."
Josh was scheduled to attend Millard South High School this fall. Millard is a suburb of Omaha. His sister, Erika, attends Millard West High School. His parents are Charles and Dorothy Fennen. The family moved from Denver to Omaha in 1997, when Charles was relocated through his job with Union Pacific Railroad.
The family — who live in northern Sarpy County near the path of Sunday's destructive tornado — were unreachable Thursday morning. Co-workers of Dorothy Fennen, who teaches English as a second language at Bryan Middle School in the Omaha school district, said officials from the Boy Scouts of America picked up the family Thursday morning to take them to the Little Sioux area.
A family member in Texas had no comment.
"We're just grieving right now," he said.
Millard Public Schools counselors are assisting staff, students and families dealing with Josh's death at Millard South High School.
It's hard to cope with the situation, Alfrey said.
"We have 800 students at the school, but something like this really hits home and shows you that every student is special," Alfrey said. "Our hearts go out to the family."
—Dane Stickney
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SAM THOMSEN
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Sam Thomsen, 13, loved the Boy Scouts, loved the Nebraska Cornhuskers and was enthusiastic about life.
"Sam is ready for a week in the great outdoors," he wrote on his page in Facebook, an online networking site, just before leaving for the training camp at the Boy Scouts' Little Sioux Scout Ranch.
Wednesday evening, Thomsen, 13, the son of Larry and Sharon Thomsen of Omaha, Neb., and brother of Lindsay and Sara, was one of four scouts killed when a tornado struck the camp.
"He's just a great kid," said Dr. Jim White, pastor of Southwest Church of Christ, where the Thomsen family are longtime members. "He was a typical teenager, always has a smile on his face. He was just a joy to be around."
The family home-schools their children, White said. Sara just graduated from high school and Lindsay attends Wheaton College.
Sam's Facebook page lists his interests as Jesus, football, the Huskers, playing Xbox video games and the Roadrunners, a basketball team for home-schooled children. "Go, Roadrunners," it says.
Sandy Glenn, who coached Sam's basketball team the past two years, said teammates, including older players, liked Sam, who wasn't tall but tried hard and improved tremendously when he moved up from the Roadrunners' 12-and-under team this year.
"Sam was probably one of the nicest kids you could ever be around," Glenn said. "He was just enthusiastic, eager to learn, real coachable. He was just a wonderful kid. That's the part that breaks my heart.
"We'll miss his personality more than anything."
Sam was active in Sunday School and this spring went with a group to a church leadership training convention in Kansas City, Mo., White said. When he returned, he wrote a sermon based on the Biblical character Samuel he was named after, and then delivered it at a special service at his home church.
"He did a wonderful job," White said. "I was real impressed."
Family members and friends gathered at the Thomsen home overnight and Thursday morning.
Larry Thomsen is a longtime Douglas County employee, supervising residential appraisers for the Assessor's office and formerly with the Register of Deeds Office. Sharon Thomsen is a homemaker and does some work for the Hyatt Reservations Center, White said.
"The office is mourning, and praying for the family," Assessor Roger Morrissey said.
Coach Glenn said Sam's family would come to watch the basketball games. "They're just a nice family. It's a brutal thing."
Losing children shouldn't happen, he said, "but the reality of life is that it does. It seems too far away until it happens to somebody that you know."
—Steve Jordon
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