Opinions

Ben and Edie Grunwald: ‘You’ve got to cling to each other’

Recently, I sat down with Ben and Edie Grunwald to ask how they are doing. Edie is busy with her campaign for lieutenant governor, as well as supporting other families affected by crime. She is running on a crime platform and says it is linked to the economy as well. She wants to provide a voice of fairness in government for Alaskans, she says.

With the anniversary of David's disappearance, I ask them for some thoughts. "David would be getting his senior photos now," Edie mentions. "He'd be getting ready for downhill skiing again, for college, telling me what he wants for Christmas and his birthday." She expects they would have shopped for school clothes, as they always did, and that she would be participating at his school.

"The fact that something like this would even happen doesn't seem likely or real," she says, saying sometimes they are still in a state of disbelief.

I wonder about Ben and Edie as a couple. "You've got to cling to each other, really," Edie says. "He deals with it differently than I do. Work with it, not against it. Be patient. We both loved David. It's something that we share. Be respectful and supportive." They both say they know there is a job to be done, for example, going to the courthouse.

One thing they still do is search for David's phone, callously tossed away that fateful night a year ago, hoping for a few more photographs of the son who will never come home.

Lori Jo Oswald is the managing owner of Wordsworth Writing and Editing. She lives in Palmer.

The views expressed here are the writer's and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary@alaskadispatch.com. Send submissions shorter than 200 words to letters@alaskadispatch.com. 

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