All Eternity Lies Before Me
Loreen Gibbons
- A
- suspense-filled
- real-life
- drama
- perfect
- for
- veterans
- and
- fans
- of
- military
- dramas
- alike,
- the
- author
- interweaves
- her
- memories
- as
- a
- Navy
- pilot’s
- wife
- with
- the
- tale
- of
- what
- happened
- to
- her
- husband’s
- crew
- after
- having
- to
- ditch
- their
- crippled
- plane
- in
- stormy
- North
- Pacific
- waters
- during
- the
- Cold
- War.Alfa
- Foxtrot
- 586,
- a
- P-3
- Orion
- turboprop,
- was
- conducting
- a
- sensitive
- Cold
- War
- mission
- off
- the
- Kamchatka
- Peninsula
- on
- October
- 26,
- 1978,
- when
- a
- propeller
- malfunction
- turned
- into
- four
- engine
- fires
- and
- the
- pilot—Loreen
- Grigsby’s
- husband,
- Jerry—was
- forced
- to
- ditch
- into
- remote,
- mountainous
- seas
- churned
- by
- a
- frigid
- North
- Pacific
- storm.
- The
- aircraft
- sank
- within
- ninety
- seconds,
- taking
- one
- of
- the
- three
- rafts
- with
- it—which
- left
- thirteen
- men
- to
- huddle
- together
- in
- the
- remaining
- two
- rafts,
- the
- smaller
- of
- which
- soon
- began
- to
- leak.Told
- from
- Loreen’s
- perspective
- as
- a
- navy
- wife
- at
- home
- as
- well
- as
- through
- the
- eyes
- of
- the
- men
- who
- survived
- the
- disaster,
- All
- Eternity
- Lies
- Before
- Me
- weaves
- a
- gripping
- tale
- of
- struggle,
- uncertainty,
- grief,
- and
- heroism.
- It
- shares
- Loreen’s
- terror
- as
- she
- receives
- notifications
- about
- her
- husband’s
- crew’s
- desperate
- battle
- against
- wind,
- seas,
- and
- biting
- cold.
- It
- details
- the
- ad
- hoc
- search
- and
- rescue
- mission,
- a
- valiant
- effort
- to
- rescue
- the
- men
- before
- time
- runs
- out.
- And,
- tragically,
- it
- tells
- how
- a
- young
- Navy
- wife
- becomes
- a
- widow
- and
- single
- mom.But
- Jerry’s
- death
- is
- not
- the
- end
- of
- Loreen’s
- story—and
- in
- the
- years
- following
- his
- loss,
- she
- discovers
- resilience,
- strength,
- and
- even
- new
- love
- with
- one
- of
- the
- accident
- survivors,
- Matt
- Gibbons.
- As
- she
- begins
- her
- journey
- toward
- a
- brighter
- future,
- she’s
- inspired
- by
- the
- camaraderie
- and
- brotherhood
- forged
- between
- the
- survivors
- and
- their
- rescuers—and
- ultimately,
- the
- long-term
- lessons
- learned
- by
- all
- involved
- become
- part
- of
- the
- lasting
- legacy
- of
- this event.
