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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (July 2, 2015)
Adrift anchors Ashore ‘Pure Americana’ COAST WEEKEND NORTH COAST • 3A 143rd YEAR, No. 2 THURSDAY, JULY 2, 2015 ONE DOLLAR Son’s rare malady spurs statewide awareness Condition could be fatal without fast medication By KYLE SPURR The Daily Astorian An Astoria mother’s campaign to raise awareness about her son’s rare med- ical condition went statewide last month. The Oregon Legislature passed two bills this session supporting those with adrenal insuf¿ciency, a genetic condition that occurs when the body is unable to produce enough cortisol, the stress hor- mone vital to life. Kirsten Norgaard’s 7-year-old son, Tristan Norgaard, was diagnosed with adrenal insuf¿ciency one week after he was born. Since then, she educated her- self and has advocated for more aware- ness. The disease impacts 1 in every 10,000 to 18,000 children. Motivated by her experience, Kirsten Norgaard helped form the nonpro¿t Ad- renal Insuf¿ciency United, or AIU, with Eugene resident Jennifer Knapp, whom she met through a Facebook group. “What we are doing is trying to save lives and trying to educate people about his condition,” Norgaard said. “If we don’t educate, nothing will change.” Before pursuing state legislation, Norgaard started her push for awareness locally in Clatsop County. She recalls about three years ago she happened to From left: Tristan Norgaard, 7, his mom, Kirsten Norgaard, and his sister, Faith Norgaard, 9. KIRSTEN NORGAARD Submitted Photo See MALADY, Page 7A A LONG ROAD TO RECOVERY A year later, Washington family tries to cope after tragic drowning at Long Beach, Wash. EDITOR’S NOTE: Last July, 11-year-old Lindsey Mustread drowned while playing in the surf near the Bolstad beach approach in Long Beach, Wash., with her cousin and younger brother. In an interview at her Port Hadlock home, their moth- er, Brandy Boyd, 35, spoke at length about her family’s struggle to come to terms with the tragedy. She also shared valuable insights about how, and why locals should educate tour- ists about local beach hazards. ‘She wasn’t afraid of anything.’ — Brandy Boyd Mother speaking of her daughter Lindsey Mustread who drowned while playing in the surf daughter ¿nd the right balance be- tween being respectful and being true to herself. In ¿fth grade though, Lindsey showed her family and teachers that she could also be dedicated, responsi- ble and wise. “She really learned more about who she was and what she wanted,” Boyd said. “She’d still punch them boys and chase them around, but she knew her limits.” Lindsey was passionate about horses, and had begun working and riding at a neighbor’s stable. It seemed to do wonders for her restless spirit. After she got her own horse, Phoenix, she lived to spend time with it. She of- ten said she couldn’t see the point of showering, since she’d just get dirty in the barn the very next day. “She’d take her shoes off and clear the entire upstairs of our house,” Boyd laughed. By NATALIE ST. JOHN EO Media Group PORT HADLOCK, Wash. — As a little girl, Lindsey Mustread begged her uncle to teach her to swim by throwing her in cold, swift water. By the end of that day, she was jumping into the water by herself. “She wasn’t afraid of anything,” mother Brandy Boyd, said. Lindsey loved thrill rides that could terrify adults. Once, she talked her way into a mutton-busting con- test at a fair, even though she’d never done it before. Last spring, she broke her nose practicing softball one eve- ning and still went out for the team the next morning. When she decided she wanted to join the football team, her big brother, Willy Malcomson, 18, couldn’t talk her out of it. “It’s alright. If I get broken, they’ll ¿x me,” said the young girl, who had proudly posed with a cast on her arm for school picture the year before. That unfaltering toughness and bravery stayed with her in what turned out to be the ¿nal moments of her life. Lindsey’s quick thinking and grit like- ly saved her 11-year-old cousin, Jor- dan “Junior” Boyd, and her 10-year- old brother, Kenny Mustread, when a wave swept the three of them out to sea on July 3, 2014. With her ¿nal, heroic act, she proved that she wasn’t just fearless; she was selÀess, too. ‘It was that fast’ Bigger than she was Blonde and rosy-cheeked with a mischievous grin, Lindsey was brim- ming with opinions, plans and dreams. Life wasn’t always easy for the family. Boyd, who is a paralegal, was raising three kids, mostly on her own. Willy had gotten into some trouble as a teen. But the family had a close circle of friends and neighbors in the small DAMIAN MULINIX — EO Media Group Brandy Boyd sorts through photos of daughter Lindsey had spread out on her bed while working on a project for Lindsey’s friends last month. Lindsey drowned off the Bolstad beach approach on July 3, 2014. town of Chimacum. The idyllic rural setting suited Lindsey especially well. She and her friends loved climbing trees in the cemetery, riding quads and building forts in the woods. Always con¿dent, Lindsey often acted like she had life all ¿gured out. She dispensed tough-love advice to her big brother and mapped out a life- plan for herself and Bryan Brook, her sweetheart of two years. She could be strong-willed and re- bellious, sassing bus drivers and earn- ing a reputation for a certain kind of eye-roll. Boyd tried hard to help her For a decade, Long Beach had been the place where Boyd and her kids went to feel happy and free. In 2004, the family was going through a rough patch. Wanting to provide her kids with an escape, Boyd searched for vacation ideas and learned about the peninsula’s Fourth of July celebration. The annual hol- iday at Wildwood Campground be- came a beloved family tradition that drew more participants every year. Last year, Willy decided to visit his dad’s family in Illinois instead, with a promise to join them the following year. But nothing could keep Lind- sey, Junior and Kenny away from the beach. When they reached the edge of the sand at mid-day on July 3, the kids leaped from the truck and raced toward the water, pausing just once — Lindsey and Kenny knew that, just like every year before, their mother would want a picture of them when the ¿rst frigid wave hit their skin. See RECOVERY, Page 10A Cannabis guru hopes to start coastal clinics Believes oils have healing properties By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian Jon Marsh, a self-styled cannabis consultant, said he started treating himself with marijuana after contracting Gulf War syndrome while serving as a U.S. Marine in the ¿rst Gulf War. By the time voters created medical marijuana programs in Washington state and Or- egon in November 1998, Marsh was a consumer, grow- er and advocate of what he be- lieves is a plant with amazing healing properties. “I’ve been doing it since 1993, trying to get it legal,” Submitted Photo Jon Marsh, a cannabis ad- vocate, wants to start can- nabis care clinics in Wash- ington state and Oregon. said Marsh, 47, who got into cannabis extracts a few years back. Marsh, born in Astoria and raised in Ilwaco, Wash., hopes to open medical marijuana clinics, called CannaCare Centers, up and down the Long Beach (Wash.) Peninsu- la and North Coast. He wants to start the ¿rst clinic in Long Beach by August and one in Astoria by fall. Marsh, who is relocating from California back to the Paci¿c Northwest, said his focus would be on providing information about the medical uses for cannabis and medic- inal tinctures, oils and other extracts. He said he has ac- cess to lab-tested medicines that have treated cancer, lu- pus, Lyme disease and other illnesses. See GURU, Page 7A )LUVW)ULGD\RQWKH3OD]D 0XVLF0RYLHV)RRGDQG)XQ /LYHPXVLFE\&DVWOH7RZQ )ULGD\-XO\UG0XVLF0RYLH +DQGVRQDFWLYLWLHVDQGJDPHVIRUDOODJHVJDWKHU\RXUODZQ FKDLUVDQGEODQNHWVIRUDSPVKRZLQJRIWKHPRYLH )HUULV%XHOOHU«V'D\2II)RRGYHQGRUVFDVKRQO\ )LUVW)ULGD\6XPPHU1LJKWVDUHIUHHRIFKDUJH &ROXPELD5LYHU0DULWLPH0XVHXP