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Dear Editor,
I have been following the recent stories published in your paper regarding the recent death of a participant in the Skyline
Journey Wilderness Program located in Nephi, Utah.
I am following it very closely because my son is currently a participant in the Skyline Journey program. He has been
with Skyline Journey since May and is scheduled to return home in August. My son was member of the same group as Ian August and was
hiking with him on the day of the unfortunate tragedy resulting in Ian's death.
Ian's death is by all means a tragedy. There are no words to describe how tragic this incident is. My deepest sympathy
goes out to Ian's family and also to the owners and employees of Skyline Journey. But we have to remember that tragedies happen every
day. Your newspaper is full of the stories. If anyone is blaming the owners and operators of Skyline, their blame is very misplaced.
My husband and I have struggled with our son's emotional and behavior problems for many years. We have dealt with many
people including school administrators, teachers, doctors and insurance company employees that simply do not care about the special
needs that children and parents with these kinds of issues require. Wilderness programs are a necessary resource for children with behavior
problems - not because the parents or the children have failed but because the system has failed the children and the parents.
Enrolling our son in Skyline Journey was a hard decision. We live 1500 miles away from Nephi. But it is a decision we
felt we felt we had to make.
I did a great deal of research on the many Wilderness programs that are in operation both in Utah and in other states.
We chose Skyline Journey for several reason, mainly their non-deprivation philosophy (sp.) and their overwhelming love for the children
in their program. Mark Wardle took the time to answer all of our questions. My husband and I traveled to Nephi to meet Mark and Lee
Wardle in person before enrolling our son. Mark allowed us to ride to the camp site with our son to see first hand the conditions he
would be living in. We were able to meet the staff and other students and observe the conditions personally. All children had all of
the equipment necessary to insure their safety and comfort, including plenty of food, appropriate clothing, bedding and plenty of water.
The other students and staff welcomed our son with open arms. Our son did not hike for 3 days after arriving. This allowed him to become
accustomed to the altitude and weather conditions. We left that day knowing our son was in good and caring hands and we feel the same
way today.
Skyline is not a boot camp. They would never purposely put a child in harms way. I have had many conversations with Mark,
Lee and Alberta Wardle since May and their love and caring for the children in the program is simply overwhelming. They do not do this
type of work for any reason other than they want to make a difference in the lives of troubled youth.
I feel compelled to write to you today and I hope you will publish my letter because the public has a right to know the
truth about Skyline Journey and its operators. Never will you find a better group of people to help guide troubled teens. Mark, Lee
and Alberta are wonderful and exceptional people. Skyline is a wonderful program and I would recommend it to anyone. If I had any doubts,
my son would not be there today. And he IS still there today.
Thank you for allowing me to express my opinion and I do hope you share it with your readers.
Mary & Paul Steinwachs
25985 Evans Rd
Tonganoxie, KS 66086
913-845-5137
marys@firststateks.com
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