Boundary County ID Archives Obituaries.....Saunders, Kjestine July 29, 2005 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/id/idfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: K T bluewolf@onemain.com September 1, 2005, 2:58 am KOOTENAI VALLEY PRESS Kjestine Saunders Funeral services for Kjestine Saunders, two years, 11 months old, were held at the First Christian Church in Sandpoint on Friday, August 5, 2005. Kjestine died along with her mother and father July 29, 2005 of injuries sustained in a vehicle collision on U.S. 95 south of Bonners Ferry. Kjestine was born in Bonners Ferry August 20, 2002, the daughter of Tabitha Saunders and Bart Bartron, both of whom were also killed in the collision. Her sister, Lyssa Saunders, two months old, was critically injured, but is recovering with the love of her extended family. Kjestine was a bright little girl who loved bringing out the laughter of everyone she was around. Like her Mommy, she loved books. She loved Winnie the Pooh, Scooby Doo and the "Lord of the Rings" movies. She also loved playing with her plastic food and dishes. Kjestine would give everyone in the room a plate and cup, and proceed to provide "food and drink," continuing until everyone had their fill. Like her mother and grandmother, she had to make sure everyone was satisfied. She also loved the family pets, and fed them all the time. They, too, had to eat until they were full, or Kjestine wouldn't be happy, and most often, they were grateful for her attention. She loved dining out, and on getting in the car, her first word was invariably, "Eat!" Kjestine loved her little bicycle, drawing and coloring. She was a delightful child who touched everyone who knew her, and while she was only here for a short time, she will be missed forever. In addition to those who survived her mother, Kjestine is survived by her grandparents, Glen and Fern Bartron; aunt April (Bartron) Mooney and husband Justin, great-uncle Don Bartron Jr., and great grandparents Don H. Bartron Sr. and Emma Lehman. **** Tabitha Christine Saunders 1983 ~ 2005 Services for Tabitha Christine Saunders, 21, Bonners Ferry, were held in conjunction with her daughter and fiancé August 5 at the First Christian Church in Sandpoint. She, her daughter Kjestine Saunders, two years old, and her fiancé Bart Bartron, 24, were killed in an early morning vehicle collision on U.S. 95 just south of Bonners Ferry July 29, 2005. Her daughter, Lyssa Saunders, two months old, was critically injured in the collision. Tabitha was a devoted mother and a devoted friend to many. She was also a proud Native American, a direct descendant of Chief Narcisse Isadore of the Kootenai Tribe, who died in 1935, and who was a very intelligent man strictly educated only in the Native American way, and a fighter for his people and their land. Tabitha inherited many of her grandfather's traits, and never stopped fighting for those whom she held dear. She loved children of all ages, and was quick to give to those she felt were less fortunate than she. She always tried to make every child she met feel special, especially during the holidays. She said her grandmother Saunders always went all out on those occasions when she was a child, and she wanted to give that back to the children around her. She loved time spent with her children, reading, bowling, amusement parks, board games and car shows. She also had happy memories of fishing with her grandfather Shofner. Tabitha is survived by her daughter, Lyssa Renee Saunders; her father, Duane Edward Saunders, and his girlfriend, Shirley Fitzpatrick, her mother Margret Katherine (Saunders) Young and step-father Paul Young; brother Scotty Duane Saunders, maternal grandparents Marion and Marlene Shotner; step-brothers and sisters Jessica Carillo, Stephanie Hudson, Dillon Fitzpatrick and Lacey Fitzpatrick; and her biological native family; uncles Richard Isadore and Blair Smith and aunt Delaphine Isadore. *** Bart Dersu Bartron Bart Dersu Bartron, 24, died July 29, 2005, from injuries he received in a head-on collision at the south end of Bonners Ferry, Idaho on Highway 95. Funeral Services were held on Friday, August 9, at the First Christian Church in Sandpoint, Idaho. Bart was born in the High Sierras of Bishop, California, on June 24, 1981, to Fern and Glen Bartron. He and his family resided in California, Nevada, Oregon and Sandpoint, Idaho, where he graduated from Sandpoint High School in 2000. He was home schooled for three years, which helped him to become an avid reader. He loved J.R.R. Tolkien’s works, which he had read by age 11 with the aid of a college dictionary. He loved all things pertaining to fantasy and adventure, from King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table to Star Wars. He loved role-playing and video games, snowboarding, paintball, and jousting with his friend. His musical tastes ranged from classical to heavy metal and he was learning how to play bass guitar. He was interested in other cultures and wanted to travel to Rome, Japan and Germany. He enjoyed getting tattoos and body piercings, dying his hair in wild colors and wearing clothing that made statements. He wanted to see how many people would actually be able to talk to him, and get to know him rather than immediately reject him because of their prejudices, and fears. He hated hypocrisy, cruelty, corruption, greed and intolerance and he was not afraid to speak his mind. He was very entertaining to his friends, he kept them on their toes, never quite knowing what to expect next and not wanting to miss out on something he might say or do. He enlisted into the Army on December 30, 2004, where he excelled in all his training. He became the platoon guide in basic training. He was stationed at Fort Richardson, Alaska, with the C Company Task Force 1-501 Airborne as 13 Fox fire coordination specialist (“FIST”). During obstacle training in basic, his unit buddies would yell, “Do the little Buddha, Hart!” which he would then perform the karate kid crane stance across the beamwalk of the confidence course. While on a training exercise in Australia he was affectionately given the honorary title of “Demon Monkey” for his tenacity by members of his unit. He was really beginning to “find his stride” in his unit and he loved the Army Ethos. His company commander said, “He was a great young leader, who had unlimited potential and a great attitude.” His battalion commander said, “He was a proud young American soldier and an inspiration to us all.” His awards and decorations include his paratrooper wings, expert rifle badge, Combat Infantry Badge, the Army Commendation Medal, Good Conduct Medal (Posthumously), National Defense Medal, War on Terrorism and Sea Service Deployment Ribbons, respectively. He will be greatly missed by his unit. He was home on a two week leave and was able to see his two month old baby daughter, Lyssa, for the first time since her birth, and to be with his beloved daughter, Kjestine, two years old, who was the light of his life. He and his girlfriend, Tabitha, had been visiting with many family and friends while he was home, including some of his friends who were also home on leave from other duty stations. He was slated to deploy to Afghanistan at the end of the year. He is survived by his daughter, Lyssa R. Saunders, his parents, his sister, April Mooney (Justin) and one month old nephew, Gavin, grandmother Emma Lehman, Bishop, California, grandfather Don H. Bartron, Sr., Hawaii, and a large extended family who loved him dearly. Bart was cremated and his remains will be interred at the gravesite of Tabitha and Kjestine Saunders at the Pack River Cemetery. Certó idem sum quí simper fuí. (Certainly I am the same as I always have been) Additional Comments: KOOTENAI VALLEY PRESS Boundary County, Idaho http://www.kvpress.com/obituaries/ Volunteer submission - No relation to the deceased. August 26, 2005 **** File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/id/boundary/obits/s/saunders743gob.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/idfiles/ File size: 8.4 Kb