Rudy Noorlander, Bear Attack Victim

My father is the bravest and strongest man I know. Rudy is the owner and operator of Alpine Adventures in Big Sky and he was contacted by hunters to rent out some of his ATVs . After hearing that the hunters killed but were unable to find a deer, Rudy being the Good Samaritan that he is decided to help them search for it. He had tracked a deer but it turns out it was not the deer the hunters had shot. He saw one smaller adult grizzly bear nearby. Instinctively, he pulled out his firearm and the grizzly ran away. About a half an hour later, before he could even have time to react a different 10 foot tall and far more aggressive bear was on him. Rudy aimed his gun at the bear but his firearm misfired, making his best choice of defense his fists as he did not have any time to get his bear spray from the front of his holster. As the bear lunged the only thing Rudy could do was punch the bear in hopes of slowing it down. Unfortunately it did not, the grizzly left a large scratch down his right chest, bit his arms, leg, and to top it all off, gave him as what Rudy describes as the most disgusting french kiss of his life before biting down and tearing off his lower jaw. Luckily he was not alone, the hunters were there to scare the bear away and call for a life-flight but since the threat of bears still loomed, the first helicopter that responded needed to wait. Rudy was lying on the ground for an additional 2 hours (while still fully conscious) until he was able to be picked up by the flight crew. An amazing feat of strength as he did not pass out from fear, pain or the blood loss. He was rushed by an incredible team to Bozeman Deaconess where they could assess his wounds and stabilize him. After an initial surgery to stabilize Rudy he was flown to University of Utah Hospital where he currently is in critical but stable condition. Rudy is a Navy Veteran and has VA insurance but due to the surgeries and his time in the hospital he will need additional funding to help pay for his extensive medical bills and being out of work as he is self employed.

Thank you for any help and prayers.

Even though Rudy is fighting in the hospital he still wants to cheer people up and try to make someones day a little bit brighter.