Dmitry Feld is seen here on Main Street in Lake Placid in early March 2022. (Enterprise photo — Lauren Yates)

When there has been such a loss in our community, what is there to say?

Lake Placid’s Dmitry Feld died at the age of 68 on Wednesday after leukemia, which had gone into remission years prior, reemerged, and he developed RSV and pneumonia. He leaves behind a wife, Linda, and son, Dima, as well as countless other family, friends and admiring acquaintances and neighbors.

“Nobody is alone in their grief with Dmitry,” his colleague at USA Luge Gordy Sheer said this week.

That’s absolutely true. With the news of his passing came a wave of stories, kind words and memories of him from people all around the Tri-Lakes region and the world. From these ancedotes, an image of a man who is a devoted husband, an unwaveringly passionate humanitarian and a friend to everyone emerges. Feld’s legacy clearly goes beyond his 40-year career at USA Luge, his position as president of the Shipman Youth Center board and as co-organizer of the I Love BBQ and Music Festival. It’s seen in small interactions, jokes and shared kindnesses with others, too.

This is further evidence of the old saying that happiness never decreases by being shared. It’s proof that we all have the ability to leave our mark on this world through kindess, love and perseverence in the face of something hard. USA Luge CEO Jim Leahy told the Enterprise this week that Feld, who grew up in Kyiv, Ukraine, single-handedly raised more than $100,000 for Ukraine after the Russian invasion. He was a community leader in every sense of the word.

Many of us are thinking of Feld’s family now, we hope they will find all of the support they need as they grieve this loss. We hope, too, that as we remember Feld we find ways to carry on his spirit in our own lives.

“If everybody could be more like Feld, this world would be a better place,” Sheer said.

We couldn’t agree more.