RE: In memoriam

I can't begin to do justice to Len's virtues, or his contributions to the
WAI. 
So I won't try.  Others have hit the high spots.  Here is but a tiny example
that I particulary enjoyed:

Len had a knack for defusing a flamewar on the listservs.  He would simply
wade
into the discussion that had degenerated into a food fight, and lead the
thread
back to higher ground by posting something on topic in a civil, constructive
tone.  No admonitions to play nice; just an example _right there_ of how we
all
should have been behaving.  It was often all it took to spread oil on the
waters.  Everybody recognized the problem and the difference.  This left
nobody
mad at him, and countless lurkers thankful.

This is but one of the many ways we benefited from his perennial warmth and
grace.

Al

At 08:31 PM 2001-05-17 -0400, David M. Clark wrote:
>Wendy et al,
>
>I want to reiterate one of the themes Wendy raises, because I experienced it
>first hand. I have known Len his whole time of participating in WAI, and I
>always appreciated the we he went out of his way to understand me and the
>points I was trying to make. I also know that he did a lot of work with AAC
>users in Philadelphia. It is a rare gift that is all too uncommon in this
>world.
>
>Len will sorely be missed.
>
>dc
>
> -----Original Message-----
>From: w3c-wai-er-ig-request@w3.org
[<mailto:w3c-wai-er-ig-request@w3.org%5D>mailto:w3c-wai-er-ig-request@w3.org]
>On Behalf Of Wendy A Chisholm
>Sent: Thursday, May 17, 2001 2:34 PM
>To: w3c-wai-er-ig@w3.org; judy Brewer; William Loughborough
>Subject: RE: In memoriam
>
>Hello all,
>
>Len and I tried to talk on Fridays to plan for the WAI ERT WG.  We only
>missed a few and I think it was because our conversations were so
>enjoyable.  We talked about new tools, dreams of an accessible Web, WCAG
>issues, experiences with developers, but we also talked about life and
>philosophy.  We had scheduled a 1/2 hour talk, but usually talked at least
>an hour sometimes more.
>
>He was a good advisor, someone working in the trenches bringing good
>information to the table.  He made the WCAG WG face difficult issues
>head-on.  He asked the questions that no one else was asking.  He was funny
>and witty.  He was a great listener,  a quick learner, a problem
>solver.  He made the world a better place. I will miss the wonderful ideas
>and perspective that Len brought to our work and lives.
>
>I would like to create something (a short message?) on the WAI ERT home
>page, but am not sure what to do.  Ideas?
>
>RIP. With sympathy,
>--w
>
>At 02:01 PM 5/17/01 , David O'Neill wrote:
>>To all friends of Len,
>>
>>I had the privilege and honor of knowing, and working with Len over the
>>last year and a half.  I feel a terrible void, and will miss working
>>with him, talking with him, and learning from him.  Those closest to
>>him, and his family - please know how much he will be remembered by
>>everyone who knew him.
>>
>>-david
>>
>>
>>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: Sean B. Palmer
[<mailto:sean@mysterylights.com%5D>mailto:sean@mysterylights.com]
>>Sent: Thursday, May 17, 2001 1:50 PM
>>To: wendy A Chisholm; w3c-wai-er-ig@w3.org; judy Brewer; William
>>Loughborough
>>Subject: Re: In memoriam
>>
>>
>>"William Loughborough" <<mailto:love26@gorge.net>mailto:love26@gorge.net>
wrote:-
>>
>> > I would like to propose a "memorial reinsertion of
>> > 'Repair'" into EARL.
>>
>>That goes without saying. His last message to me was an off-list
>>half-joke about voting for "Report" vs. "Repair" vs. "whatever". It's
>>clear that he liked "Repair"... although he did tell me that his vote
>>was for "whatever". Oh no - I didn't even reply... I thought he had
>>sent it to the list.
>>
>> > If I can stop crying long enough.
>>
>>Same here... I only knew him for a few months, but in that time I
>>found out how incredibly open and friendly he was. I can't even begin
>>to imagine the loss of the WAI, his friends, and his family. Deepest
>>sympathies to all.
>>
>>--
>>Kindest Regards,
>>Sean B. Palmer
>>@prefix : <<http://webns.net/roughterms/>http://webns.net/roughterms/> .
>>:Sean :hasHomepage <<http://purl.org/net/sbp/>http://purl.org/net/sbp/> .
>
>--
>wendy a chisholm
>world wide web consortium
>web accessibility initiative
>seattle, wa usa
>tel: +1 206.706.5263
>/--
>

Received on Friday, 18 May 2001 09:24:26 UTC