[Vision2020] A loss for Idaho

[Warren Hayman]

They found his body today. Idaho has lost an icon of poetry, teaching, publishing, and lover of Idaho itself.

Warren Hayman





 

July 06, 2008
Idaho poet, kayaker William Studebaker presumed drowned
Studebaker, 61, was last seen south of Yellow Pine. Idaho has lost a 'true force of nature,' a friend says.
One of Idaho's foremost poets and kayakers is missing and was presumed drowned Friday south of Yellow Pine while kayaking in challenging rapids with friends. 

William Studebaker, 61, of Twin Falls, was first seen swimming for shore Friday morning on the East Fork of the South Fork of the Salmon River and then floating face down. 

Friends on the road and in kayaks could not find him, though his kayak and other gear were recovered Friday. 

Valley County Search and Rescue, local law enforcement and emergency crews from various agencies also were unable to find him. 

Friends, kayakers and rescue crews continued searching Saturday, but high water runoff and the swiftness of the river hampered efforts, said Lt. Dan Smith of the Valley County Sheriff's Office. 

"It's a huge blow," said Shelley Gardner, a friend and an owner of Idaho Guide Service, for which Studebaker worked. "He was the premier kayaker. His love for the river ... he was just so passionate. He was an amazing storyteller. He will be missed." 

Studebaker was a well-known Idaho poet, essayist and outdoor photographer. 

"He's a great spirit," said Paul Shaffer, executive director of The Cabin, a literary center in Boise. "He was a terrific writer, fabulous teacher, one of the most capable boaters. He was all Idaho. He really loved this state." 

Studebaker was born and raised in Salmon, friends said. He spent 30 years at the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls, teaching English and coordinating the outdoors program before retiring in 2005. 

Studebaker and his wife, Judy, have four sons. 

"He had little patience for people who said they wanted to write if they only had the time," said Rick Ardinger, a longtime friend, owner of Limberlost Press and collaborator with Studebaker. "He raised four kids, taught at the university, built a house, raised bird dogs. He lived to the fullest." 

Studebaker worked as a correspondent and feature writer for the Times-News and as a feature writer for Idaho Magazine. He frequently published in Tertulia, an online magazine, journals and reviews. 

Studebaker also taught literature classes for Idaho State University. He received the Idaho Humanities Council's Outstanding Humanist Award for 2005. 

"He's the true Idaho poet laureate," Ardinger said. "He was born in this state and has written about it so eloquently." 

Studebaker's books include "Short of a Good Promise," which details the life of his family in the vast expanses of southern Idaho, and "River Religion," a collection of kayaking poems and "... histories of adrenaline rushes I have waltzed through or limboed under." 

"His poetry was about Idaho, the rivers the landscape," Ardinger said. "He writes about the desert." 

Ardinger, executive director of the Idaho Humanities Council, said Studebaker was engaged in the arts and in preservation of the literary heritage of Idaho. 

"It was not just for his own writing," Ardinger said. "He has always had a fascination for the literature of Idaho. He was an editor, a collaborator. He's been a wonderful friend but he's also been a great .... we're losing a lot. We're not just losing a friend, we're losing a force - a literary force, a true force of nature. He put his whole heart into everything he did." 

Ardinger believes Studebaker may have died doing something he loved and wouldn't have wanted it differently. 

"He'd always say, 'I'm not going to die in a bed,'" Ardinger said. 

Sandra Forester: 377-6464 
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