Papa Pilgrim’s death leaves family both sad and relieved

Thu, May 29, 2008
Posted in Alaska News, Top Stories

Papa Pilgrim’s children are reflecting on their father’s life. Robert Hale died in the Anchorage Correction Complex Saturday night. He was 67 years old and just six months into a 14 year sentence for rape and incest. The former McCarthy resident had been sick with cirrhosis. He is survived by his estranged wife, Kurina Hale, and their 15 children. For the whole family, Hale’s passing has meant both sadness and relief.

Amy Bracken, KCHU - Valdez

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Comments

2 Comments to “Papa Pilgrim’s death leaves family both sad and relieved”

Christian Andersen on May 30, 2008 at 10:52 am

It is too bad that this family still does not consider the employees of the National Park Service or their families to be worthy of an apology for their actions. Many involved in this issue were emotionally distraught, personally targetted by land rights groups, felt threatened, and some even resigned and moved rather than work on this distressing case. In my experience, NPS employees care deeply about the places they make their homes in, school their children in, and work side-by-side with neighbors to build better communities. Often it is only NPS, or other federal and state employees, that show up at volunteer events. Someday we might get past our lables and learn to live as neighbors.
John on May 31, 2008 at 9:36 am

No one heard from the NPS employees that I recall about their personal issues. It seems like the daily news should have covered that. If their families suffered that’s wrong and the families are due an apology. We do however; need people in positions of leadership and power to accept responsibility for what they do whether on behalf of themselves or their Washington bosses. There is far too little accountability as it is.

The park service wields the standard Federal “limitless” budget to force their policies on Alaskan’s and ignore historical individual and common property rights as they wish or policy dictates. If they want everyone to respect Federal land use policies, they should be prepared to be flexible with history and independent spirit of men. This doesn’t mean I have no compassion for the NPS employees, but when individualism meets the excessive power of Government a lively discourse if bound to follow. If the founding fathers were concerned about King George’s feelings when leaving the oppression of England we’d still be saluting the Kings colors.

Not everyone wants to live in an Alaska that’s a regulated park with the exception of a few cities. The grand volume of Alaska land is in federal hands one way or another (or ruled by radical environmentalists) and that’s not good for our society. Its rather part of grand scheme of ultra leftist’s desire for a utopian society where the independent and daring are not needed anymore.