Bruce’s Legacy first met Kelly Dalton, and her family, back in October of 2016, shortly after her son, Tyler Spink, had a kayaking accident. He, and a friend, decided to Kayak on a portion of Lake Michigan by the Platte Bay, when conditions became unmanageable. Tyler’s friend was picked up, by a fisherman, towards evening and survived.
After municipalities and other search teams, aided Kelly and her family, we returned 4 times ultimately, in attempts to bring some relief to the family. We had great support from the community and her family and friends. The municipalities, DNR, Coast Guard and the entire community of Franfort, Michigan and beyond, renews our faith in what working together is about.
Kelly’s drive and persistence is indescribable.
The team of Drew and Kathy Morris were an important part in all of our trips to Frankfort. Beth and I have been lucky and honored to have their assistance on the boat.
Beth and I made the 11 hour drive on July 16th and rejoined forces with Drew and Kathy. We were unfortunately not able to search the following day due to winds. The next day we put in a long 14 hours, on the water. We checked many points with the ROV and then ran sonar for the remainder of the day.
On Thursday, July 19th, we ran sonar for most of the day. We covered a large grid but had one pass remaining to complete it. The team convened at the control area of the boat, to begin to devise the next strategy. While I was still monitoring the last pass, an image of great interest appeared to me and our plans quickly changed. We took another pass, at a different angle, over the target and decided to deploy the ROV for a live direct view. The initial view of the area with the ROV was somewhat discouraging, as it was not what we were looking for. However, it was questionable, as to whether or not it was my actual primary sonar image. I continued to look into the area with the ROV. In the initial primary sonar image, it appeared he was laying up against a log, which made it a very challenging sonar image to identify. Tyler was located very nearby around 180’ deep, in a similar area, with similar objects around him. The crew was overwhelmed. I called Dave Dalton to find Kelly, so that we could give her the news. That discussion is one that will stay in our crew memories for a very long time.
We then called the Benzie County Sheriff’s Department who brought aid from the Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Department Dive Team, the DNR , Medical Examiner, and Park Ranger. We brought him to the surface after their boat’s arrival with our ROV and entrusted his care to their team. They were gracious and grateful and worked together in an efficient and extremely professional manner.
The mission for Tyler took many trips, days and hours, as well as emotion and mental contemplation on location, and on the home front. Hours and hours of reviewing previously recorded images and files were spent. This has been our most challenging search to date, for many reasons. The extreme faith and persistence of Kelly, along with the additional skills of Drew and Kathy Morris, were key. The result of success, by meeting Kelly’s goal, is beyond gratifying. Rest in peace Tyler.