Last Sunday Mount Rainier National Park and the Rainier Climbing Community lost yet another long time friend. The following is from our Chief Ranger Chuck Young and former climbing ranger Mike Gauthier. Thanks Guys. A memorial service honoring the life of Ted will be held this coming Thursday, August 16th around 6 pm at the Community Building in Longmire, WA. Everyone is invited to come and help us celebrate the life of our friend. It is a potluck so along with stories bring some food and beverages to share. If you would like more details about the location or event please
email us, we will try to be timely in our response.
We are saddened to report that MORA Protection Division employee Ted Cox
has passed away from complications related to an aggressive form of
cancer. Ted, 70, passed away this Sunday in the company of dear friends
and loved ones; he had worked for the past 10 years as a seasonal Trails
Laborer at Camp Muir.
Ted’s career at Mount Rainier was defined by meticulously taking care of
the waste and water systems for Camp Muir, arguably one of the world’s
most difficult utility systems to maintain. He did so with pride,
dedication, and joy, which earned him the unofficial and affectionate
title of "Mayor of Camp Muir." By doing his duties so well and with
such disarming charm, the climbing rangers were better able to focus on
the pressing needs of public safety and resource protection. Each week
in the late spring and summer, Ted began his work shift by hiking to the
10,000 foot high camp where we would reside for four days. Each trip, he
would pack and haul heavy loads of supplies and materials; often he
performed arduous and physically demanding tasks at high altitude which
is always an impressive feat. This is something that Ted did with
gleeful pride up until his diagnosis this June.
With a playful and light-hearted grin, Ted often said that maintaining
the critical waste system at Camp Muir was his “life’s work.” He was
serious about that too, as he loved the mountain community and the
unique personalities that he would meet day to day. Ted did more than
just maintain a utility system, however; he also cared for the staff as
a non-judgmental friend and confidant, and always kept the peace amongst
a dynamic crew of with equally dynamic personalities and situations. Ted
was the person that rangers and guides could rely upon to help maintain
cohesiveness and peace within the sometimes intense and stressful
situations that can exist at 10,000 feet. Before Mount Rainier, Ted
worked at Olympic National Park in the maintenance division, and in the
off-season, lived in Sequim, WA and in Talkeetna, Alaska. He will be
sorely missed by the guides, rangers, his friends, and the public who
had the good fortune to meet Ted at Camp Muir or while hiking up or down
from Paradise.
