On June 28, family and friends held a funeral in Bethel for Chester Kashatok of Kwigillingok. The 45-year-old had been missing since October 2025, nearly eight months after the remnants of Typhoon Halong ripped through his community.
Kashatok was the son of 67-year-old Ella Mae Kashatok, whose body was found one day after the storm. Her brother, 71-year-old Vernon Pavil, is still missing. The three were together inside the same home when rising floodwaters and powerful winds swept it off its foundation on the morning of Oct. 12, 2025.
In mid-June, a local resident located Kashatok’s remains in the Kwigillingok River roughly a mile outside of town, according to Alaska State Troopers. The remains were sent to the state medical examiner’s office in Anchorage and positively identified as Kashatok.
Two days after the storm, troopers and other emergency responders had suspended the search for Kashatok and Pavil as the mass evacuation of Kwigillingok was underway. In the weeks that followed, village public safety officers and search and rescue volunteers kept looking for the pair.
Kwigillingok Tribal Administrator Gavin Phillip attended Kashatok’s funeral at the Moravian Church in Bethel. He said that his longtime friend was soft spoken, but had a gift for playing guitar and “had the courage to sing in front of people every so often.”
Phillip said that Kashatok was grounded in his Moravian faith and would often quote his favorite Bible verse from Proverbs about the importance of respecting the teachings and guidance of parents.
Kashatok was buried in Bethel Memorial Cemetery. He is survived by his father, Joseph Kashatok, daughter Denae Kashatok, son Nolan Atti, sister Kristen Sutton, and numerous extended family members.
