Earlier this week, I visited Tim Maher. It would mean a lot to him if you
would, too.
Because I live about 6 blocks from Tim in Ballard, I used to see him in the
neighborhood with his wife, Yeshe. Over the years, his Perl (and other)
training slowed down (as did mine), so we'd trade stories about post-SPUG
activities. Tim had begun teaching psychology, and enjoying his music. Later,
he claimed to be officially retired.
When I saw him at the beginning of the summer, he was using a walker. Last
week, I saw Yeshe and she told me he was no longer leaving the house.
One of the things I liked best about SPUG was that there was a sense of
community, not merely a shared technical interest. The connections I made at
SPUG and OSCON were more than professional networking. They were a critical
part of my life and my self-identity.
My wife Wendy is fond of saying "Community is who shows up".
In its prime, SPUG was a community with a lot of people showing up. Tim was a
catalyst for that happening. Even though NY claims to be the first Perl Monger
group, SPUG has bragging rights to the first Perl _user_ group, having started
meeting before the PM moniker took root. Tim was instrumental in this, and
even won a White Camel award for this community building work.
Now, "Community is who shows up" has a different flavor. Tim has difficulty
speaking, but he can still understand conversations around him. And he
definitely appreciates the company. If you can show up for a visit, it would
make a huge difference.
Feel free to contact me if you'd like to hear more, or call Yeshe on (206)
789-8924 to schedule a time.
Thanks, SPUG.
--
Michael R. Wolf
[email protected] | LinkedIn.com/in/MRWolf | +1-(206)-679-7941
All mammals learn by playing
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