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IK2CBD > WPACK 21.09.04 15:45l 164 Lines 7164 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 612365IK2CBD
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Subj: G4IDE, Roger's Funeral
Path: ON0AR<ON0AR<IW2ESA<IZ0AWG<IK1ZNW<IR1BG<IR1UAW<IK2QCA
Sent: 040921/0714Z @:IK2QCA.ILOM.ITA.EU #:11381 [Milano JN45NL NHLNETWORK]
From: IK2CBD@IK2QCA.ILOM.ITA.EU
To : WPACK@WW
Date: Mon, 20 Sep 2004 17:32:12 +1000
From: "Darryl Smith" <darryl@radio-active.net.au>
Subject: Roger's Funeral
G'Day...
I know a lot of people would have wanted to attend Roger's funeral
but were unable to because of other commitments and the distances
involved.
In the normal scheme of things I would not have been able to
attend the funeral, but I was able to thanks to the coincidence of
spending a few days in the UK on the way to Rome for work.
I took the train from London King's Cross up to Grantham, and was
picked up by Ken Collins. Four of us went to lunch at a local pub
having Lincolnshire sausages for lunch, and then prepared for the
funeral. Ken went in the funeral cortège, where the rest of
us went direct.
Roger's service was due to start at about 3:20PM. The casket
arrived about this time, and those gathered followed the family in.
Enya's Shepard Moons was playing in the background when the people
entered.
Dee and the children sat in the front Row; and I think Roger's
sister was in that row too. I was in the second row with
Ken Collins and a woman who I was introduced to but
cannot remember the name of. The rest of the congregation
sat on the rows behind.
I was given a special place in the service, at the family's
request sitting in the second row. This was from people I had never
spoken to, and for the funeral of a man I had never met. I was honored,
and at felt at least partially unworthy.
After an introduction, the congregation sang the hymn "The Day
Thou Gravest Lord, Is Ended". This was not one that I knew
so it was lucky that it was in the order of service.
After this the funeral celebrant spoke about Roger's Life, history
and loves.
I learned a lot about Roger during this talk. How he was a sports
fan, and much he loved his family. I also learned that roger
having been born in 1947 was the same age as my own father.
Then followed a poem Roger wrote at University called "The Death
of Creativity" read by his son. After this Ken Collins gave
a tribute to the family about some of the things that he had
done and the impact he had in the Ham Radio community - and
the world outside. This included a quote from Andrew Robb
from here in Australia from the online condolence book.
TAPR also got a mention.
Following this was Roger's favorite song "Heaven (Candlelight Mix)"
by DJ Sammy, either as a reflection or prayer depending on your
beliefs. This was rather sad and stirring, bringing much of the
congregation to tears.
Following this song was the commitment, where the curtain was
pulled around the coffin ready for cremation. At the end of the
service everyone was invited back to the house, not the least
to see the presentation of Roger'saward. It was stated that
I came all the way from Australia to present the
award. Not quite, and this left me a bit embarrassed.
The funeral celebrant said some more things, and then we were
asked to leave out the side door. The music was the Theme from Ally
McBeal. Roger loved Ally McBeal, not the least because it was set in
Boston, USA, and Roger lived in Boston, UK.
Following the service everyone went outside to see the flowers.
This is a concept that I have never seen in Australia and is a nice
touch. I also got to meet Dee and the family for the first time.
[One other thing to note, the cemetery/crematorium I believe
is on Marian Way, with Friar Way and Robin Hoods Way intersecting.
Sherwood Ave and Sheriff Way are close by. For those that do
not know the geography, Nottingham is only 30 miles away. And
if you have no idea what I am talking about, do a search on Google
for "Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Nottingham"]
On getting to the house, we were all invited into the back garden.
Everyone has given a glass and some wine. They actually ran out
of wine but had non-alcoholic which really suited me since I do not
drink. [I know, an Australian that does not drink... ]
Dee and the two children were at one end of a huge circle.
I then got to present the parchment and the plaque to Roger.
I basically did what John Ackerman N8UR had done at the DCC,
and read each out and presented each. And added some words
of my own.
Dee noted that in the last month and a half, that there had
not been much that had brought light into Roger's life.
One of the things that brought so much joy to him was the award.
And I believe that the family got a lot from
seeing his reaction to the recognition.
They were all so happy that Roger had got some recognition.
Everyone seemed to be impressed with the plaque.
[They also got a lot from the APRS community too]
Following this presentation, there were two others.
The Tier 2 Sysops gave US$500 and the Core Sysops gave US$600.
These were presented to each of the children, and they both
noted that the money was being donated to 'The St
Barnabas Hospice', a voluntary organization which cares for
terminally ill patients.
It worked out so well, with each of the three getting to receive a
token from the community.
I can now see the impact that the TAPR award had on Roger and
his family.
They kept thanking me for what I had done and for the award.
And I kept needing to say no, it is me who needs to thank you
for letting me participate and for supporting Roger with his work.
What Roger had never told his family about was the impact of
his software on the real world.
Roger was a real sports fan, and had spent a lot of time
attending sports events, and also a lot of time participating
in sport.
He loved cycling, and used to cycle next to his daughter whilst
she ran.
But he had never told them how his software had been used
in the Sydney Olympics to support the cycling, and the marathons.
Nor how it had been used in IronMan Hawaii where it was used to
track for the cycling and the running. His son seemed really
impressed when I let him know that I had the Sydney Olympics
recorded in UI-View. [And I warned them to keep a lookout
for an IronMan Polo Shirt I had sent in thanks for his
assistance with IronMan]
What I am going to do now is to get together all the bits
and pieces I have on UI-View in the real world and will
send the family a CD. This will include stuff on how UI-View
was used in the Sydney Olympics and the like.
After the presentation, one of the hams gave me a lift
to Grantham station, although I would have loved to stay much
longer at the house. But the offer of the ride was too good
to ignore, and I arrived back in London about 8PM.
Darryl
---------
Darryl Smith, VK2TDS POBox 169 Ingleburn NSW 2565 Australia
Mobile Number 0412 929 634 [+61 4 12 929 634 International]
www.radio-active.net.au\blog\ - www.radio-active.net.au\web\tracking
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73 de Adriano
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WinPack-TF V6.80 (R): msg sent on 20/Sep/2004 at 14:31 (UTC+2)
UIVIEW32 V 2.03 (R)
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