One of three men whose body was recovered when his boat capsized on Lake of the Woods has roots in and around Forest Lake.
Cody Joseph Ostendorf, 24, traveled onto Lake of the Woods in a small boat with Keith Ayers, 28, and Justin Kelly Haugtvedt, 22, late in the evening on Oct. 2. The next day, the men’s boat was found capsized, with life jackets underneath, and the men could not be found. Volunteers, the U.S. Border Patrol, the Lake of the Woods County Sheriff’s Office and others helped conduct searches for the men. On Oct .11, local authorities confirmed that Ostendorf’s body had been recovered from the water. Haugtvedt’s body was recovered two days prior.
Though initial reports listed all three men’s residence as Baudette, Ostendorf lived in Chisago City up until relatively recently, and unconfirmed reports from readers said that he and his family lived near Linwood Township when Ostendorf was younger. According to Ostendorf’s Facebook page, he graduated from Forest Lake Area High School in 2009.
A GoFundMe account raising money for the men’s families has been set up here.
More information on this story will be posted as it becomes available. If you have further information on Ostendorf’s local history, please contact The Times at 763-233-0714 or ryan.howard@ecm-inc.com.
