Wednesday, July 31, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
Daniel Gaetke, son of Las Vegas residents David and Barbara Gaetke, and his wife, Stephanie, were getting ready to board TWA Flight 800 when Stephanie suddenly stopped and turned around.
"Stephanie turned to her sister, Lisa, and said, 'I'm afraid the plane will break apart,'" said Edward Morgan, a family friend who also lives in Las Vegas. "And Lisa replied, 'Don't worry about it. You're safer than you'll ever know.'"
The Gaetkes, both 32 and from Kansas City, Mo., were among the 230 passengers on Flight 800 who were killed when the jetliner exploded and crashed July 17 off Long Island, N.Y.
Also among the passengers were Chrisha Siebert, 28, of Kansas City, Mo., and Brenna Siebert, 25, of Jefferson City, Mo., Stephanie's cousins on her mother's side.
"They were the only kids on that side of the family," Morgan said. "The crash just wiped out the entire Siebert line."
The Sieberts, both Kansas City teachers, had boarded the flight to accompany the Gaetkes, also teachers, on a month-long trip to Europe.
"It's so sad," said Morgan, 50, a supervisor for Silver Springs Bottled Water. "They all made the trip together. They all were going to see Europe, and this was also supposed to be Danny and and Stephanie's second honeymoon."
Morgan said the couple, who had no children, had hoped to conceive a child in Paris.
The bodies of the Gaetkes were found Saturday.
"One ship brought Danny in and another brought Stephanie in," Morgan said.
Gaetke's parents, David and Barbara, who have been in New York City since the day after the crash, identified the bodies.
They couldn't be reached late Tuesday, but Morgan said the family is satisfied with TWA's efforts to find and identify the remains of those who died and to comfort family members.
"The peole at TWA are doing a great job," Morgan said. "They've just bent over backwards to help us."
Although not related by blood, Morgan is considered a part of the Gaetke family.
"I met Dave in 1970 when we were all living in Cypress, Calif.," Morgan said. "I had walked into a restaurant, and I overheard him talking to a few friends about starting a business, and then we got to talking, and we've been friends ever since."
When the Gaetkes moved from California to Kansas City, Morgan remained close with the family.
And last year, when David and Barbara Gaetke moved to Las Vegas, they convinced Morgan to move here also.
Today, they own homes in northwest Las Vegas -- but Morgan is staying at the Gaetke family home, answering calls and helping to comfort his good friends during their time of trouble.
"I've known Danny since he was 4 years old, and he was just a great kid," Morgan said. "He comes from a family of nine brothers and sisters, and Danny went on to get his master's degree and become a teacher. He loved working with kids."
It was when Daniel and Stephanie Gaetke were in Las Vegas to visit their parents last January that they told Morgan they were planning a trip to Europe.
"I remember we were all down at the Fremont Street Experience celebrating," Morgan said. "It was such a wonderful time."
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