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My 's Encounter with a Black Bear August 1993: In San Bernardino National Forest east of Los Angeles, two near identical but separate incidents occurred within three days of each other at campgrounds. In each case, a bear grabbed 13-year-old males who were sleeping and tried to drag them away. Though the boys were scared, only minor injuries were inflicted. I remember that morning. I getting ready for work. I was planning to leave work at noon to drive to Burbank to pick up my boys from Summer Camp. Just before leaving for work, I received a call from the Camp. My older was being loaded into an ambulance. He had been involved in an unprovoked attack by a bear. He and a group a had been sleeping in a gazebo type enclosure. A bear had walked over a group of to get to my . At first he thought it was a raccoon, but when the bear had my 's head in his mouth, My started screaming for help. The camp counselor from Denmark told Josh to shut up and go back to sleep. Josh continued to scream, so the counselor got up and kicked what he though was a raccoon in the butt. The raccoon stood up and became a bear. The counselors started banging rocks together to scare the bear away. The Danish Counselor even started singing to the bear. Obnoxious camp songs, that did it. The bear ran away. We were driving to San Bernardino County and listening to the radio in the car. The news about my was being broadcasted. We found out that my was in surgery at Big Bear Hospital on the radio. He received one hundred and fifty stitches in the back of his head. We went to the camp and there was media all over the place. There was also Media at the hospital. My made the National News. We came home and media was camped in front of our house. A few years ago, I received a call from a television station wanting to know the whereabouts of my . He was in the Persian Gulf. Three days later after the incident with my , the same bears (there were two of them) went into a nearby Boys Scout Camp and attacked three more . One young boy ended up in surgery at Redland Hospital but he too recovered. This time the bears were treed and sent to bear heaven. There are several youth camps near that incident. I am glad I had good health insurance. I certainly needed it that year. My received an Seventeen Thousand Dollar Haircut. The Camp's Insurance covered three thousand dollars in special services - the hospital's handling the press. They also sent a special counselor to handle traumatized . My insurance company actually got billed $3000 from the hospital for handling the media. When we dropped the boys on the bus for camp. It was my younger one's first time. He was crying about being all alone. My friend assured him no ever complains about having a bad time after going to camp. I am sure this is an experience that he will never forget. My older boy opted not to go to Junior Life Guard Program that year. He would have been shark bait with the wound on his head. Both boys did go back to camp the following year. My older boy faced the media with an outrageous sense of humor. He has been on various talk shows including a documentary called the World's Most Dangerous Animals Both boys have grown into fine young men. My older boy ran in the Los Angeles Marathon several time. He joined the Navy and became a Nuclear Technician. When he was in Boot Camp and asked about the scars on the back of his head. He simply replied, "it's the map to dry land." In the Navy tradition - He got himself tattooed. Bear Claws. I made him a medicine bundle when he went the Persian Gulf. I found a real bear claw, utilizing West Virginia Road Kill. - This year, I gave him another bear claw and he asked where I got it. - I told him "I date rednecks!" what do you think.  Abracadabra  |
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6/17/2006 10:51 am |
i am so glad that your son survived.....bear attacks and the persion gulf. good post, star.
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6/17/2006 5:10 pm |
What a interesting story... Glad your son's safe in both instances.
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