Tragedy Strikes the Little Town of Washington
Mr. Donald Shipley, OwnerRiver Rest Resort
Washington, California
If you did not know Don Shipley, or any of his family members for that matter, you missed out. The opportunity to ever meet Don Shipley on this earth has passed you by. A tragic accident ripped him away from those who knew him, loved him and enjoyed every opportunity to love life along side him.
How does one even begin to write a tribute to a man that had such an impact on his family, his extended family consisting of hundreds of friends, and the community he lived in? The death of a loved one is always very hard, but when it comes in the form of an accident.....when that all-important person is struck down unexpectedly in the prime of their life....it becomes impossible to fully recover. The sudden shock of it all burns a large gaping hole in your heart. It can only be comforted by knowing where he is now, keeping close ties with his family, and the memories of a good friendship shared over the years.
As you read this tribute please remember I am not a writer, and I am not a very good blogger. My wife and I last visited Don in the hospital just 7 days ago, so the shock, hurt and pain is very fresh, and the tears keep coming at unexpected times. This is my attempt to say good bye....I need the therapy of thought to process this ugly event. As I rewind from the present back to the past, I find it difficult to process the emotions in order to move forward and give an account of where we met and how our paths moved forward to develop a kinship that bonded our friendship in so many ways.
If you did not know Don Shipley, let me introduce him to you.........
I moved to the little town of Washington in the mid 90's and enjoyed living there for three years before being forced to move back to Grass Valley. I used the resort as a place to store in my travel trailer while work was being done on my home. The owner of the campground was a single woman who always seemed to have grand ideas for the park but the task was daunting. The mobile home portion of the business was run down, and the history of drugs and related lifestyles within the park was a deterrent to any effort at bringing about any substantial change. To make a long story short, I ended up marrying the owner that ended in divorce after three years. During that time the River Rest Resort (RRR) campground was washed away in a massive flood but the mobile homes remained.
Enter Don, his wife Debbie, and their three children - Mike, Jennifer and Alyssa. Don and Debbie loved RRR and for many years had dreamed of someday owning the facility. Through a series of transactions, they were able to do just that. It was at this time I got to know the Shipley family, as our homes were within walking distance to each other overlooking the town. Quads and dirt bikes were used to get to town and the campground as standard practice, and we also found ourselves on many pleasure trips throughout the hills, target shooting, exploring and generally just having a ball. I felt blessed that we not only enjoyed a good working relationship on the transfer of ownership, but also became good friends. I cannot count the number of meals we shared together at the Shipley abode.
In addition to taking on the ownership and reconstruction of RRR, Don and Debbie purchased the general store, which served as a central hub of activity for local residents akin to the only local bar/restaurant in town called the Washington Hotel. I eventually adopted a nick name for Don because of his stature that developed in the community. "The Don" and "The Donald" represented, in my mind, a fitting description of this man among men who knew the value of hard work, fair business dealings, a love for his family, his God, and his country.
Over the years, I watched Don & Debbie do nothing but work their butts off....making improvements to the store, and clearing out all the junk trailers in the park. One by one, Debbie processed eviction notices and once vacated, Don would move in with his tools and physically disassemble the crusty old mobile homes and hall away the metal. The process took years, and I believe to this day that Don and Debbie's team work was the only possibility of any hope for success in rebuilding, improving, and establishing an environment that eventually saw a growth in families returning to RRR for all it had to offer. They injected hundreds of thousands of dollars into this little community. They created employment. They created a customer base for the bar and restaurant in town. Debbie improved the store by stocking and increasing quality product lines of goods instead of junk. Don spent his days at RRR laying in all new wiring, a duplicate-tank septic system, rebuilding the bathroom/shower facilities, adding a children's playground, expanding the full hook-up capabilities to nearly double the capacity, adding laundry facilities, creating a dance pad on an old cement foundation, bring in live music for Friday/Saturday night entertainment....the list goes on and on and on. "The Don" knew what he was doing, and when Debbie eventually sold the store, she was able to concentrate full time on the increased bookings for more and more campers. They even added Wi-Fi last year.
Don built a cabin on the river so they could live in the campground 24/7 during the camping season. He and Debbie's hands-on attitude forced them to deal with difficult campers in the beginning. RRR had a reputation for loud parties and some visitors acting like animals. Come 10:00 p.m., they would cruise the campground on their quads, bringing about order and quiet. It was not uncommon for them to call the sheriff to enforce an order to vacate....immediately....if you refused to cooperate with this new ownership team that had put the word out. The facility was now a family-friendly park, not a pit stop for groups to party and trash the place.
Don and Debbie had a vision. I could see the customer base changing over the months and years that followed. I am there often, I see the fruits of their labor, and so do their regular customers. Today you can experience an RV park that is not only clean and well maintained, but quiet at night, even when every space is occupied. Today you see $200,000 motor homes arriving with a $20,000 trailer filled with thousands of dollars worth of quads, dirt bikes and other toys brought up by young families from the bay area or down from Reno to enjoy the Yuba River and all that it has to offer. The Shipley's established a dog park/beach on one end of the river boundary that is shallow and ideal for young children and their pets, and at the opposite end they developed a 'no-pets-allowed' sandy beach that caters to those wanting to dive in to deep pools from the wall-like rocky mountain side on the opposite side of the river.
Don added a premier horse shoe pit built to professional specifications, a tether ball pole, ping pong table, raft sales and an air compressor for customer use. If a father was in a bind and forgot to bring extra fuel for the toys, Don would provide him with some fuel but he never advertised it. Think about that for a moment....you work all week, rush to pack and drive your family for hours to the campground ready to have some fun riding the trails, only to discover you forgot your gas cans for the quads. The nearest gas station is at least a one-hour round trip, and you don't even have the empty cans needed. You think that father didn't appreciate Don when he stepped up with that kind of help? You bet they did, and it was that kind of service that helped business grow. Need a BBQ? Don would loan you one of his.
Don and Debbie ("D&D") made sure every campsite had their own trash can and recycle can, and they are one of the few campgrounds in America that will deliver firewood to your campsite every evening. I told Don it reminded me of the ice cream truck that used to cruise our neighborhood when I was a kid. No doubt I am forgetting some items for this list of accomplishments. They really are too numerous to recall, but I think you get the picture. Don and Debbie know the value of hard work, putting up with government regulations, meeting deadlines, raising a family, loving their environment and mostly doing everything possible to improve their lives, and the lives of those who visit for some rest and recreation on the river and the hundreds of miles of trails to explore.
Did I mention Don was also a licensed contractor? Guess what he used to do during the winter months when the campground was closed for the season. Yep...he went to work. Don installed professional furnishings for banks and commercial offices, cabinets and counter tops, etc. It usually required he work all night and on the weekends when the businesses were closed. His son Mike would accompany him often on these jobs, usually in the bay area. As his own business improved, he started talking about cutting back on the out-of-town jobs. He wanted to remain in Washington with his family and take more time to enjoy the life he created. Every time he tried to cut back, he was offered even more money, increased compensation for his motel, meals, fuel, etc. They kept making it hard for him to say no, because Don loved to work. Folks knew Don was a master craftsman.
Getting Personal
If you did know Mr. Don Shipley, then you will might relate to the other side of Donald Shipley that needs to be a part of any tribute to this wonderful man that I have attempted to describe above. His professional work ethic is described above. His personal life is touched on below.
Because of our favorable business transaction, Don & Debbie have, through the years, always extended a free campsite for me and my family, and stated that would be the case as long as they owned the park. Having respected their generosity all this time, I would look for ways to help, but seldom got anywhere. Don kept saying "No!" when I would offer to help with trash runs, firewood sales, etc. He would tell me to just relax. When I knew they would be busy with limited sites available, they would still try to place me next to their cabin. I did occasionally get to help, Don would allow me to tag along to help sell firewood or load trash into his backhoe bucket. He had a system, and sometimes an idiot trying to be helpful would just get in his way. I recognized that it was best to just do what he said, not as he does. Sometimes he just appreciated having the company along.
Don would often call from his cell phone while going to and from jobs in the bay area. "Hello Michael....just checking in" he would say. I tried to plan trips when I knew he would be home, but often times that didn't work out and I would sit on the porch with Debbie and we would solve all the world's problems or talk about the kids. When I would get up in the morning, Don was already off doing something and I would offer Debbie breakfast. When I inquired if Don might be able to join us, she would say things like "You know better than that, he's hot on it, we won't see him for hours".
I mentioned once to Don that I needed to get a shelf installed in my RV closet, and he immediately dropped what he was doing and within 30 minutes had a shelf cut and installed, a task that would have taken me hours. He was a master craftsman and had all the right tools and he never hesitated to help anyone who needed it. I always admired his skills and work ethic. He made me realize how inadequate I was in some of those areas. To my pleasure, he did always take me up on my offer to provide security during the early years when he would stage a large event and have a packed campground. As a police officer, I was better suited riding around on the quad wearing a ball cap and t-shirt that said "security" while he tended to what he called "PR"....public relations. He loved getting to know his campers and hopefully he enjoyed knowing I was 'on patrol' so he didn't have to worry about it. Don developed relationships with his regulars, always taking the time to sit at their campfire and enjoy a cold beer after a hard day of labor.
I was always amazed, sitting on the porch of their cabin, listening to both Don and Debbie acknowledge the campers by name as they walked by on their way to a swimming hole or the showers. Not only the parents, but many of their children's names as well. Some of the parents would join us around the cabin fire pit at night where Don and Debbie would develop lasting friendships with their campers. Many of these families have been coming to RRR for many years now, and much of the reason is the bond they feel with the Shipley family. Some remember the old days before D&D took over, and they continually heaped well-deserved praise on these two hard workers who never stopped making improvements year after year. RRR has truly become a family park. Gone are the party animals raising hell. D&D do cater to motorcycle groups, but the caliber of these particular campers contributes to the peace and quiet that all can enjoy these days. They respect what has been accomplished, and they also know Don and Debbie have a no-nonsense attitude towards rowdiness which helps explain why they keep coming back. Even bikers enjoy some peace and quiet in the evening. Most of the noise that is generated in the early evening consists of laughter coming from little children and grown adults, sitting around their respective campfires.
Don developed many a bond with fathers who would join him at his favorite sport....throwing horse shoes. There were many nights when the campground would be settled down and quiet and all one could hear was the 'clank' sounds coming from Don making another ringer. That's how you knew where Don was in the located in the evening, you would here that horse show game in progress.
And when it came to food, it didn't get any better than the servings from Don's grill or Debbie's kitchen. I would at times offer up my contribution to dinner but Don would usually say "No, I got it covered". You see, Don had this ability to prepare an evening meal well in advance through the magic of marinade. I could offer up a rib-eye steak or some chicken but he would just say "No, I got it covered" because he had a plan, and he was going to stick to it. He would do all the prep work before I could even arrive. No one could do Cajun shrimp like Don Shipley. No one. He could also serve up a perfect "butt chicken" using a recipe that I could never fully figure out. All I knew was, the man could bar-be-cue! Something else I could never figure out.....how Don stayed so trim in light of Debbie's cooking ability. I always urged them to open a little cafe at the campground. I could envision campers being drawn to the odors of bacon drifting through the campsites in the morning or some marinated meat that Don would construct in the evening. But like Don would say...."We got enough to do already Michael".
One night last summer will remain forever etched in my mind. It had been a busy day for the Shipley's, and when dinner was done and the dishes put away, I was the one blessed with a visit to my campsite. Don, Debbie, Michael, his wife Cori and Alyssa all showed up with their own chairs to sit around my campfire. Don and Mike had their respective guitars in hand, and those two sat there and entertained us all for hours, strumming away in a soft manner that just lent the night to one of pure bliss. Both Don and Mike had a love for music. For Don I do believe it was a close second to playing horse shoes. There is no doubt in my mind that Michael will carry on the tradition of playing music for his family while parked at the campfire.
As Don's labor of love produced a vast amount of improvements, he was also able to get his parents to move to Washington, which pleased him to no end. He made his father proud. It was always a joy to watch them interact with each other. We all got to watch Mike, Jennifer and Alyssa grow up, and a big part of the pain needing to be dealt with is knowing Don won't be there to eventually walk Alyssa down the isle to marriage.
Don and I got to share many an adult beverage together into many a late night around the campfire or the pool table at the hotel. I got to know what was important to Mr. Don Shipley. His family. Especially his wife. He once confided his feelings to me this way: "Michael, I am blessed. Truly blessed. Not only do I get to live and work in God's country, I get to have my family here too. There is no way I could have pulled this off without Debbie. She is truly my life's partner, the best I could ever hope for. She has put up with a lot, I don't deserve her". I would jokingly respond "You are correct Don, I certainly don't know how she puts up with you".
I find it ironic that Donald saved me from a potentially serious (if not fatal) quad accident one snowy evening, only to succumb to such an untimely death himself on such a machine. When I pointed out he probably saved my life, in typical fashion he would answer "Pretty much". You heard that a lot when asking Don questions or seeking a response to an issue....."Pretty much Michael". For Don, that statement "pretty much" was standard at times for he could be a man of few words.
Don made me part of his family, and he knew I loved him, so there will always be this hole in my heart for the future that has been cut short. There were several other life experiences together that are best left unpublished, but this I can say without hesitation;
Don Shipley was a man's man. He lived a life many try to attain. He maintained his standards, his work ethic, the love for his family, his zest for life, and a solid acknowledgement that Jesus Christ was exactly who He said He was. I know where Don is. I know I will get to see him again. That knowledge provides me with a degree of comfort, but I also know from experience that the shock and disbelief that he has left us all will never go completely away. Nor should it, as far as I'm concerned.
It is my understanding Debbie didn't have to pull the plug on The Don, he passed away on his own. I can't help but think Don would not have done well confined to a wheel chair or otherwise forced to deal with disabilities that are common with massive head trauma patients. He knew his capabilities, and he knew his limits.
And as in life, Don gave even in his death, donating vital organs so that others may live. Don remains a shining example to the truth of Scripture from John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends."
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| Debbie giving Don a final kiss |
Don knows Debbie has a very strong support system. Don would say Debbie has a "plethora" of friends, and she will be wholly supported by an untold number of friends, all the while wrapped in the love of her family.
Rest in Peace my friend.
Mike Sherman
3/27/11
