Vancouver loses two of its best in May
Two friends passed away in May and both of them were Vancouver originals. The were two people who couldn’t be more different.
Dave Watson was known to most of you as a Georgia Straight tech columnist. Suddenly, last summer, Dave disappeared from the pages of the Vancouver weekly. Not realizing his absence in print I sent him an email invite to a barbeque just about the time he was diagnosed with a massive tumor in his abdomen. His reply was curt. Basically he said, I’m outta here (leaving Vancouver for a remote community), and do I know anyone who wants a column at the Straight? Knowing Dave to be typically good-natured, I thought maybe he was having a mid-life crisis of sorts and needed a change of surroundings.
Dave and I connected in the early 90s, just after he’d graduated from Capilano College’s InfoTech program, which was the preeminent multimedia arts program in the City at the time. He and a who’s who of Vancouver computer geeks were learning about the new-fangled Internet, and showing many of us how to create communities online before there ever was such a thing.
During the beginning of the Dot Bomb period of the late 90s, Dave took a full time job as a manager in a new ISP. He had to wear a tie. He lasted there about a month.
A couple years later I gave him a tour of the fledgling Electronic Arts operation (I used to work there). Turns out he was a big Need for Speed nut, and he was as wide-eyed as a kid when he met the developers.
The last time I saw him we met for a Friday afternoon beer on Main Street. We talked about everything and nothing. It was just good to see an old friend.
Dave reappeared in the Straight suddenly in the New Year to announce that he was very ill. What he described was his advanced state of liver cancer and his move into palliative care. He was dying and he wanted to take us on his ramble into eternity.
Dave died on May 7th, and was wonderfully eulogized in his former paper by past Straight editor Charles Campbell. Reading the comments, I was struck by how many people Dave and I knew in common from the “local scene.”
I felt that something was missing from the long list of tributes. It’s a sensitive topic. Dave liked to get high. He loved weed, and I think it’s why he never lived up to his full potential as a Vancouver writer. He was very talented, and his dry sense of humour is missed.
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My other friend who left this mortal coil in May was Don Lee. Don was the very epitome of someone who “gave back” to his community. He was a gentle person who was always curious about the world around him.
Don loved politics despite its ugly side. A stalwart Non-Partisan Association member, director and elected official for Vancouver City Council and School Board, he gained the respect of his peers as well as his political opponents as he fought for fairness and common sense in public policy. He became the go-to guy for Vancouver’s Chinese citizens, and in recent years spent most of his time responding to parents’ concerns as a School Board Trustee.
Despite retiring from a 30-year teaching career over a decade ago, Don continued to stay involved in shaping the city he loved, spending hours in School Board committee meetings, as well as serving beside me on the Vancouver City Planning Commission.
Don gained much of his strength from his wonderful supportive wife Sally, who was at his side always, sharing her colourful and honest view on Vancouver’s political scene.
