Celebrating a Life

Trygve T. Helleloid  (April 10, 1911 – May 16, 2011)

Laura Morris, Louise Anderson

Grandma Doris, Grandpa Trig, Richard Helleoid

100th brthday - April 10, 2011

I was recently in Minnesota, where Laura and I flew home to celebrate the life of her father, “Trig” Helleloid.  He died peacefully after a short illness not so many weeks after celebrating his 100^th birthday.  Trig was the son of Norwegian immigrants who settled on the wind-swept prairie of northwestern Minnesota.  He lived through fascinating times and his story echoes that of so many Americans of his generation.

From horse and buggy days to space travel, from the arrival of electricity and telephone service in rural America to instant world-wide communication – his generation of millions of fellow immigrant children experienced amazing change and progress in the American story being woven like a patchwork quilt across the cities and towns of the nation. 

 Thrifty and hard-working.  Self-sufficient.  Optimistic about the future.  Committed to the importance of education.   Integrity in personal and professional relationships.   Service to build a better community.  Family-centered and supported by a strong faith.    All of these were core and living values of my father-in-law.   

Trig’s father died when he was just a boy and he was raised in a blended family of mother, uncle, siblings and cousins before blended families were the norm.  Always bright and quick with figures, he finished high school at a young age and went to seek his fortune in the “metropolis” of Minneapolis just prior to the Great Depression.  He attended a business college along with several siblings.  He found work in the flour milling industry and was quickly promoted as executives valued his work ethic, financial insight, fairness and integrity, and the respect shown to all employees.  By age 29 he was the general manager of the Springfield Milling Company where he worked for 36 years.  Life in this Minnesota prairie town of several thousand citizens was not unlike Trig – stable, dependable, supportive and sufficient.

By age 33 he finally got around to wooing the good-looking young home economics teacher who had moved to town.  He and Doris McCracken were married in 1946 and would have celebrated their 65^th wedding anniversary next month.  Children Richard, Laura and Louise came along not long after.    They raised their family in a small, but comfortable three-bedroom brick home.  He often walked the eight blocks to and from work  – including a trip home for the fully cooked noon meal that Doris prepared.  His lunch hour, punctuated by blasts at 12 and 1 from the town whistle, also included a daily ten-minute nap on the couch.  An early adopter of the “power nap!”

Trig’s recipe for success in life was simple.  Always salting away for a rainy day, living below your means, and appreciating having “enough” while serving those around you were lessons learned young and never forgotten.  I can attest that he passed those traits along to each of his children and I see those values now passing to his grandchildren (eight of them) as they enter early adulthood.  He highly valued education and saved every penny needed to guarantee that all three of his children could graduate from college.  Now, most of his grandchildren have completed college and some of them advanced degrees – all living interesting, contributory lives in careers unimaginable 100 years ago.

While so many small farming towns have withered up like dry prairie grass in an August sun, Springfield has remained a vibrant community, due in large measure to Trig and neighbors like him who have constantly nurtured it, protected it and made it better for those that followed.  Helping found an excellent golf club, chartering a Rotary Club he would serve in for many decades, volunteering with Boy Scouts, and serving as a treasurer for the library board were just a few of his stewardship activities.  His friendly nature and respect for others drew many other recruits to pitch in for worthy causes in Springfield.  He was active in the Springfield United Methodist Church, always ready to serve others in need.

I remember driving to Springfield as a nervous 21 year-old college senior.  It may seem old-fashioned, but Laura and I felt it proper that I request permission from Trig for us to marry.  I had little to offer Laura but love, hope for a bright future and a future big medical school debt.  Laura was working as a teacher and would be supporting me for four years.  To our delight, he gave us his permission and blessing – but not without some important advice:  “Marriage is for a long time – to love each other for life, you must always treat each other with respect.”  A simple, important truth – one that he lived each day in his own wonderful marriage with Doris.

As we have raised our own three children, we have been guided by Trig’s journey in life.   Our children have been blessed to know “Grandpa and Grandma” and have them involved in their lives.  Trips to Springfield were times of fun, warmth, love and peace.   We will miss him.  I will miss him.  We thank God for the life he shared with us and with all those he cared dearly for.

President Obama visits Chile

How can three months pass so quickly since my last blog post? Life has been full of fun adventures and new work opportunities in Chile. Here is a highlight:

Three weeks ago President Barack Obama visited Santiago. The experience was fascinating and exciting. Preparations for a Presidential visit begin several months in advance and involve hundreds of people. Among these preparations: negotiating activities and venues between White House staff, security personnel and the host government; managing diplomatically sensitive invitation lists; preparing hotels to securely host hundreds of White House staffers and VIPs; working with the Chilean military to manage the multiple aircraft that travel as part of the “package” for a President of the United States (POTUS) and First Lady of the United States (FLOTUS) visit; contracting with and security screening of dozens of additional drivers needed to support a visit; and extensive (and I mean extensive) review and planning for all aspects of security for every activity at every venue.

Medically speaking, I played a host function for the White House Medical Unit. This team of 20 military doctors, nurses and paramedics serve the needs of the First Family and the 1200-strong White House staff in Washington. Additionally, they provide medical emergency planning at every venue the President visits and direct care for the First Family and staff that are traveling. Several medical professionals accompany every trip. One of the physicians visited Santiago three weeks prior to the visit to accompany me on visits to Santiago’s top hospitals. Four days prior to the visit, another physician and nurse from the White House Medical Unit arrived and stayed through the visit. Intensive planning took place at chosen hospitals and with the metropolitan emergency response directorate. Accompanying them on these visits demonstrated that no details are left to chance in medical planning. I was also able to expand my own knowledge of the depth of medical services in Santiago and develop additional valuable contacts.

After months of planning by so many people, the visit was executed with precision and panache. President Obama is widely admired in Chile and his major speech on new directions in Latin American policy and cooperation was well received. The pomp of official receptions, military honor guards, and a State banquet met the high standards for protocol and diplomatic success. As always, First Lady Michelle Obama was admired and appreciated by all. She made special visits of her own to a cultural museum and to a local high school (to highlight education reforms and advancement). Malia and Sasha even made this trip, along with the First Lady’s mother – enjoying Spring Break with “Dad and Mom”.

The hectic schedule included an opportunity for Embassy employees and family members to meet President Obama. After arriving to the host hotel’s ballroom 2 hours ahead of the scheduled appearance, we all went through security screening. I say “we” with a smile -- since our son, Mark, and daughter, Mary, were also visiting that week on Mary’s college Spring Break. They were permitted in the Meet and Greet event. The President appeared on schedule, offered words of thanks and praise for the successful visit and the ongoing work of the diplomatic corps, and offered handshakes to many of us, including four members of the Morris family!

I’m happy to report that no medical emergencies occurred during the official visit. Nonetheless, the entire experience will not be forgotten.

Bienvenido a Santiago de Chile!

This is the skylne of the Las Condes neighborhood of Santiago, the location of the U.S. Embassy and housing for many embassy families.  We live a few blocks behind the tallest, peaked building shown.

Official photo of the U.S. Embassy in Santiago, built in 1994.

Our apartment building near the Embassy.  We're up near the top, with nice views and a steady, cooling breeze.

Mountain view from our bedroom balcony.   Sweet.

Read the blog post below to catch up from Mike's Afghan adventure...

A New Adventure

Three weeks ago Laura and I moved to Santiago, Chile to begin our new assignment with the U.S. Department of State. We've had many experiences since my last posting. Time to bring those of you who are interested in our comings and goings up to date.

Wrapping up in Afghanistan:

In August I was fortunate to host my colleague, Dr. Tom Yun, for a week in Afghanistan. He is serving as the head of the Office of Medical Services for the State Department. We visited the army posts I worked with in Kabul along with the French military hospital where I often collaborated with doctors and nurses from France, Portugal and Germany that make up the staff. We obtained clearance and transportation to fly (in a 19-passenger twin-engine plane) to Bagram, our main American military hospital stabilization/evacuation point. This is an amazing site were hundreds of young soldiers' lives are saved from disastrous injuries each month. If injured soldiers make it from the field to this hospital, their onward survival rate is 98% or higher. Revised methods of dealing with trauma are emerging from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Among them are deployment of more surgical specialists closer to the battlefield, very rapid helicopter evacuation from any point in the country (usually less than 30 minutes from time of injury), early application of tourniquets in wounds of the arms and legs (every soldier carries at least one tourniquet and knows how to use it), and early, vigorous use of massive blood transfusions in the early resuscitation of victims. It was my last trip to Bagram, a chance to thank the outstanding American military docs and nurses I had worked with throughout my year in Kabul.

We then visited the ancient city of Mazar-i-Sharif in northern Afghanistan. The U.S. is remodeling a 1920's hotel into a consulate, planned to open later this year to serve diplomatic and development needs in this relatively stable part of the country. The American diplomatic personnel located here are currently housed with a Swedish military company, while the regional health care is managed by a German command. Both groups were hospitable and are doing great things on behalf of the NATO mission in Afghanistan. Dr. Yun wanted to visit a Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) near the frontier to understand medical care at the outposts. I was pleased to arrange a visit to the only Norwegian-run PRT in the far northwest corner of Afghanistan. While this area had been fairly peaceful, 2010 brought an increase in IED attacks and instability. We saw an excellent set-up in the Norwegian trauma stabilization unit, the well-honed helicopter recovery units and also the drone mini-aircraft used for surveillance.

The final leg of our journey was to Herat, an ancient city on the Silk Road of ancient times on the west side of the country. By Afghan standards this has remained the most prosperous city in Afghanistan. We are establishing a consulate in this city as well to meet the growing needs for U.S. Government advisers and aid workers. We attended the dedication of a new well on the outskirts of the city that will serve several semi-nomadic tribes that now live there. Just prior to the Ramadan season of fasting, the mayor of the city hosted a luncheon of business and regional governmental leaders that Dr. Yun and I attended in a beautiful pavilion just outside the city. The war is never too far off, however. The day we arrived a car bomb had exploded along the route we would have driven from the airport, so a round-about detour was quickly arranged. We passed the burned-out hulk of the truck the next day en route to the luncheon. In Herat we met with the Spanish and Italian medical teams that have responsibility for that sector. Medical care in Afghanistan is an area of great cooperative efforts. It was fascinating to meet medical colleagues and exchange information and tips/stories of our varied but aligned experiences.

The remainder of the Afghan tour was spent busily caring for patients, increasing capacity in the health unit and working on transition plans for my replacement. All in all, it was a fascinating year full of growth and challenge. Believe it or not, I had plenty of fun. The only really tough part of the year was family separation for several months at a time.

Taking a break (of sorts):

I arrived home on September 15. Every two years in the Foreign Service a four-week break is earned between international tours. Although Laura and I had planned to travel to the Southwest U.S. for hiking and camping, I decided in the end to use the time to have and recover from foot surgery. It was time to deal with some life-long and now progressive problems with a bunion and hammertoes. The surgery went fine, but recovery from three bone revisions/fusions takes time and I am still in a boot-like “cam walker” for another few weeks. We used the recovery time in Minneapolis to relax, catch up with family and friends and do some reading.

In November/early December Laura and I were students in an intensive introductory Spanish course at the State Department's Foreign Service Institute in Arlington, VA. We had four hours of class each day with 3-4 students and a native-speaking instructor, 2-4 hours in language lab and another few hours of evening study. Laura, after studying this past year, was several levels ahead of me at the beginner level. But we enjoyed being full-time students for 7 quick weeks focusing on language without distractions. We used weekends for some local tourism, a quick trip home for Thanksgiving and a swing down to South Carolina to visit Mike's brother, Dave, and his family. Despite the tough winter hitting the East Coast in December and January, we enjoyed great late fall weather and left D.C. the day after the first mild snowfall.

We spent a beautiful, snowy week in Minnesota during Christmas. Time spent with any and all branches of our family is especially valued with our itinerant lifestyle. By December 27 we had done all the packing, had shipping companies pick up our Household Effects (HHE) and headed off to Chile.

South America – the next adventure

So now we find ourselves in the beautiful, bustling city of Santiago – such a difference from Kabul. Chile has thrived from ongoing business growth, mining exports, along with active produce and wine production /exportation in the past 20 years. It is a strong ally of the United States in South America and an important model for regional neighbors – demonstrating the value of stable, democratic governance, a strong private business sector, and the stability that results from investments in education, infrastructure and equitable social programs.

My work here will be quite different from what I did in Afghanistan. While I will offer primary care clinic services in the Embassy health unit as at other posts, here I have a host of excellent hospitals and internationally trained physicians for referrals. It will be similar to working in an American city. But the assignment is in large measure a regional supervisory position. I will travel regularly to Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay to supervise the small Embassy health units there. They are staffed by nurses and nurse practitioners. Each of the countries has varying needs for health care and varying levels of quality in available local providers. I will be the supervisor, mentor, educator for these teams and health adviser to all American personnel in these Embassies. Building relationships with local medical providers and hospitals is another important duty. I will provide health education and advise Embassy leadership on pertinent regional medical issues. I love the variety of opportunities that this job presents and look forward to the travel in this region.

Laura is evaluating priorities for being active here as well. With her more advanced Spanish she has already been more active and engaged in the community and met a number of interesting people. Last summer she earned graduate credits that led to a certificate to Teach English as a Foreign Language and may seek a role in volunteer or paid work in this area. She hopes to remain flexible, however, so she can accompany me on some of my trips and make regular visits to Minnesota to assist in the care of her parents and see our adult children.

Santiago is a bright, beautiful city nestled at the foot of the towering Andes mountains. We arrived at the peak of summer, with sun every day and temps in the 80's. We live in a lovely 12th floor apartment in a modern area of the city – just blocks from the Embassy and a short walk to a Metro subway station. Local shops and dozens of great restaurants are nearby. There are some biking paths nearby that can reach fairly broad areas of the city. We look forward to buying a car fairly soon and being able to explore the beautiful countryside outside this city of 7 million. We are near the wine-growing central valley of Chile, and less than one hour driving to the mountains to the east and two hours to the Pacific beaches to the west. We are now in a position to host visitors, unlike our previous posts, and look forward to those that want to stop down for a Chilean adventure. Our first visitors will come in March, when son Mark, daughter Mary, and former exchange student Kwang-Hee arrive for a week. That will be our first chance to take a break and explore the region out of Santiago.

Laura and I have so appreciated the warm greetings from so many friends and family, and the wonderful chance to meet new and interesting people at every turn. We thank all friends and family for their outstanding support and look forward to keeping in touch in the months and years ahead.