Grieving Mom Shares Heartbreaking Story of Son's Tragic Lightning Strike Death

In a tragic incident that occurred three weeks ago, a 25-year-old hunter and his friend lost their lives in a lightning strike while in the southern Colorado wilderness. The grieving mother of the young man, Michelle Sirch, is now sharing the heartbreaking details of her last time with her son, Ian Stasko, and the days-long search that followed his disappearance.

Sirch, a 64-year-old outpatient therapist from Virginia, believes that there was a "reason" for the unexpected deaths of her son and his 25-year-old friend, Andrew Porter. She wonders if her son's soul felt it could not complete the changes it was meant to make while in his physical body. Stasko was an avid outdoorsman who had discovered a love of hunting through his longtime friend, Porter.

The two experienced hunters were in the San Juan Wilderness when they lost contact. A search involving over 170 people was launched, but it was not until September 18th that their bodies were found, two miles from the trailhead. The Conejos County Coroner later confirmed that the men had been struck by lightning, with their injuries consistent with "a pretty intense electrical jolt."

Sirch and her daughter, Dylan, were devastated by the loss, but they find comfort in the last days they spent with Ian earlier this year. As Sirch healed from a car accident, her son stayed with her, and they had deep conversations about metaphysical and spiritual matters. Sirch plans to publish Ian's writings and arrange a celebration of life for him later this year.