We were waiting for our GCSE results I think and we messed around with photo settings and then you had to go. 

You found these photos again several years later and messaged me about them, I wish we stayed in touch more but life takes over and I wish yours hadn’t ended the way it did. I hope you are at peace now and flying high! 

From your old friend Kai Varetto

Somehow Koda was scared of little cooper…. Will never forgot watching Koda chase that bunny at 2am and he was running so fast! Man we laughed for hours.

Our first mountain, glad to make memories with you. Julia is going to Mt Mitchell with me to finish our trip we had planned next week. Miss your randomness, rest easy… Don’t worry we are still going to climb K2 😘

During hurricane Florence our man Tris was keeping it real with some art and listening to so me music. Perhaps B.B king? His music and art was a piece of his harmony.

Me (from the IOM) meeting a load of his friends and some strangers, a last bit of an awesome two weeks! Maybe the happiness is hiding it, but we had barely slept at this point, taken before I left America.

This is man, the myth, the personification of LEGEND! With his companion through half of his teenage years ‘Hannah banana’ as I recall him saying! He walked her even just before Hurricane Florence hit. These photos are refreshing, seeing him happy with people’s and animals!

Continued 
He will be remembered for:
	•	His sharp mind and resourceful spirit
	•	His laughter and quiet strength thru hardships 
	•	His love for nature and adventure. A spontaneous man  
	•	His loyalty to his friends and to Koda
	•	His belief in freedom, hope, and community
	•	His heart, his humor, his courage, his light. His kindness

Though his story ended in pain, his legacy lives in love.
Violence took him from this world, but it cannot erase the mark he left on ours.

Tristan, you are deeply loved.
You are deeply missed.
And your memory will walk beside us—like Koda on the trail—steady, enduring, and unforgettable.

Rest easy, my beautiful Tristan
I take solace knowing you are up there with Koda blasting the stones and rucking through a beautiful wide
Open space with your best boy by your side. Continue on with your wondrous nature, your love for the little things and slowing down to enjoy the little things. I will do that for you. I will Remember you and Koda every day. I will carry the beautiful memory of exactly who and what you were to me forever. I will forever love and miss you both so much. Your spirit is free now, and your heart is finally at peace. You are so missed.
Rest easy now with Koda bear 🩷

Continued. 
—this was where he felt most alive, most himself.
He didn't just love the outdoors... he belonged to it.
It fueled his curiosity, matched his courage, and reflected the freedom he valued so deeply.
And by his side for so many of those adventures was his loyal dog, Koda.
Koda wasn't iust his pet. Koda was his companion. 
his teammate,his best friend. Smart. Resourceful.
Brave. Alert. Loyal. Always ready for the next journey. Always steady. where there was Tristan there was Koda and a car full of dog hair! Dirt and dog hair mostly from all the constant spontaneous fishing trips or hikes. And when you think about it... it makes perfect sense. Those same words described Tristan too.

Tristan also carried a heartfelt love for the United States—not simply as a place, but as an idea.
He believed in strength, resilience, freedom, community, and taking care of the people around you. He admired the land itself—the wild places where he found peace, and the spirit of a country built by people who innovate, adapt, and push forward together. He valued his flag as one of his most prized possessions. Like anything he did he put care and attention into it and he did it with pride.

He was the kind of person who could solve problems, think on his feet, find a way when something seemed impossible, and still make you laugh while doing it. The kind of person who showed up for his friends. The kind of person you felt safer around… just because he was there.

What happened was a tragedy we will never fully understand, and a pain none of us will ever deserve to carry.  I will search for him and Koda in everything for the rest of my days, But when we speak of Tristan, we will speak of who he was, not how he was lost.

Tristan, trizz, T
Where do I begin? How can I write anything to let the world know what is gone? You and Koda both are so deeply missed by all the people who loved you. None of it will ever make any sense. You came into my life over ten years ago and I am so incredibly lucky to have those memories to hold and cherish by my heart. You were there for me through some very dark times turning into a young adult and vice versa. We always had one another as sound boards.
I loved that about you. It didn't matter what time had passed you'd come back and move me deeply by your kind words of encouragement and support. The kind of friend you may lose touch with but always have them in your heart and when you find each other again it's like nothing has changed. The kind of friends we were that always found each other again. 
That was you! Always seeing the best potential in others even when you didn't see it in yourself. YES, YOU, were so incredibly smart, resourceful and talented and capable.I always knew in any situation if I was with Tristan I'd come out on top didn't matter the circumstances ,if I was with Tristan I was safe. If there was something we took an interest in you made a point to make these things happen so we could enjoy them together! Your curiosity that lit such a fire in you when it hit was amazing to see. An idea was in Tristan's head he ran with it an extra twenty yards.  You'd further than the average person would. Thats what made being around you so enjoyable your passion, wit and the ability to take the world and paint the day a million different colors, that day, every day! No stone unturned and always off the beaten path. You truly had a way of capturing life's most small beautiful moments and soak them in and reel in them. I will never appreciate the words stop and smell the flowers more. You had a speciality for during that in everything you did.
Tristan was at his happiest outdoors. The forest, the open road, the fresh air, the quiet beauty of nature

One of Tristan's many delicious meals made from scratch!

I’m deeply saddened by the loss of Tristan and his sweet dog Koda. I’m also at a complete loss for words at the lack of any recognization for the remarkable person he was. Tristan was a free spirit and a sweet soul. Someone you get the privilege of knowing but don’t come across often. His love for nature  and the world around him was such a sight to see. He cared about things he loved. The people he loved. And he especially loved his dog. The two of them were inseparable. Koda went everywhere with him. He was artistic. He was extremely inquisitive and always wanted to learn more. He did just that too. He taught himself how to stand on his own two feet. Whether that was learning survival skills for being out in the wilderness or how to cook incredible meals. He had this personality that makes you want to stick around and just made you happy. As soon as you met him you wanted to know more. Figure out what he was thinking. He was always thinking. He was intelligent. Extremely intelligent. Tristan or Koda didn’t deserve this and I know your free spirit is roaming the woods with Koda and flying high in the sky. You will be deeply missed and never forgotten. You were a bright light in a world that didn’t deserve you. And Koda you were a gentle giant and I’m so lucky I got to meet you as well. I hope you get all the treats in heaven you good boy.

OBITUARY

Tristan David Torry

December 8, 1996 – November 19, 2025

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