"Some people come into our lives and quietly go; others stay for a while and leave footprints on our hearts and we are never the same." - Anonymous

EXTENDED LIST OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world.
Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.   –Margaret Mead

In Footprints of Courage,I wrote, “Thousands of people provided the wind beneath our wings, holding us up throughout this surreal tragedy. Many of you we will never know. Our family is eternally grateful to you for your contribution – physical, emotional, spiritual or monetary.”

Websites give us the ability to scroll, so now we can express gratitude to so many of you we could not mention in the book because of space limitations. We will never forget the compassion you showed us when we needed hope the most. Allow us to apologize to those of you we have not named; even websites don’t scroll to infinity!

University of Minnesota:
The efforts of many faculty, staff, and students make Steve, Sara, and me proud to be alumni.

Dr. Robert Bruininks, president; his staff, and his remarkable assistant, Gail Eckel, you cared, and never ignored our requests.

Dr. Robert Seybold, and others from Counseling and Consulting Services, you came to search headquarters, or made yourselves available by phone. Thanks for offering any volunteer a listening ear, an encouraging word, or an idea how to best cope. 

Dr. James Turman, vice provost, and director of Recreational Sports, you continue to encourage our family and support the Chris Jenkins Lacrosse Invitational, we’re happy you served as a strong role model for Chris.

Alan Fine, senior lecturer, Carlson School of Management, our deepest gratitude for sharing Chris’s marketing plan with us, influencing our son in a very positive way, and continuing to offer your assistance.

Dr. Omid Mohseni, associate director for applied research and engineering at St. Anthony Falls Laboratory, and Dr. Alan Ek, professor and head of the Department of Forest Resources, we acknowledge and appreciate your countless hours of research and assistance in helping us determine what happened to Chris.

Coach Chris Larson, Men’s Lacrosse, you remained at search headquarters for two weeks (thank you, 3M, for giving him time) as the point person for all the maps, searches, distribution of vans, and other details. We know you grieved the loss of Chris, yet you stepped up and showed all of us what a leader does in the toughest times.

Minneapolis Police Department:
Sergeants Wallerich, Nelson, Looney, and Officer Frye, you offered compassion, support, and service as beat cops during our first weekend of searching for Chris with the Hoover bloodhound team in Minneapolis. We thank you, and all MPD officers, who genuinely cared and helped.

Police Chief Tim Dolan, you are an open-minded leader who demonstrated protecting with courage and serving with compassion. You raised the bar for the Minneapolis Police Department, and showed the entire Twin Cities what it means to be a man of character.

Brave friends, family members, concerned citizens
Teri Butler, general manager, Courtyard by Marriott, Eden Prairie, MN, you showered us with kindness and smiles, provided rooms at no charge on the weekends we spent in Minneapolis looking for Chris, and shared genuine concern for our son, whom you never met. Wow, thanks.

Grandma Rose and Grandpa Gene Sweet, Don and Lynn Thompson, Beth Jenkins, Deborah Stelfox, Bob and Linda McCoy, Rick and Mary Stein, Dr. Jeff and Nancy Twidwell, Pat and Carol Koness, as family members you joined our search for Chris in earnest. To you, and to others in our families who prayed, and offered hope, please know you helped us carry on.

Jackie, Mike, and Christy Woll; David Peterson; Deb and Denny Dean; Barb and Dave Baldwin; Tom and Sue Markert; Gail Steining; Elizabeth Leeper; Tim Holland; Brenda Olsen; John McMunn; Sally Leivermann; Judy and Ray Zitzloff; Bill, Annette, Tricia, and Neil Lorntson; Deborah Wingert; Joyce and Bill Sieben; Steve Sandvig; Jim Giebel; Vicky Miles; Pete Swanson; Ann Gilbert; Rolf Foster-Jorgensen; Bobbi, Pat, Kathy, Nicky, Alex, Jo, Gretchen, and Bridget Walter; Kris and Bob Falk; and hundreds of other friends of Steve, Jan, Sara, and Chris, thanks for your presence, you held us up.

Cathy Gunderson, Diane Heaton, Joyce Sieben, Karen Hendrickson, Karen Erdall, Leslie Jandro, and Sue Ahlcrona, you stood by us during the darkest days.  High school girlfriends, you rock!

Mark Anfinson, you are a talented attorney with heart. By selflessly sharing your expertise, you offered us a priceless gift – peace of mind.

Sharron and Harry Stockhausen, Expert Publishing, we applaud you for your invaluable advice and counsel.

Mary and Todd Bertelson, Maureen and Mark Magnuson, Mike Wyman, Mark and Terri Fleischhacker, as prayer warriors, you never forgot how desperately we needed spiritual guidance. We know you spoke with God, even when we could not.  God bless you for your faith.

Mike Bailey, current webmaster of footprintsofcourage.com, thanks for stepping in to support our efforts in spreading Chris’s story. Your work will make a difference for thousands of people.

Bill Lorntson, Christian Bailey, Dick Coller, Andy Benedict, Barb and Rich Meiss, Pat and Carol Koness, Deb Wingert, and Judy Zitzloff, wow, you knocked our socks off! You purchased a piece of the Twins Tradition Wall at Target Field, creating a baseball legacy for Chris that reads, “In Memory of Chris Jenkins.” Yes, in the early years, Chris (nicknamed “Dirt”) played baseball.  He loved stealing bases, which of course, allowed many teammates to score. Between sliding into bases and playing the position of catcher, not even bleach could clean his baseball uniforms.