Festus2, farewell my dear friend

geo-KEY

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 19, 2010
Messages
1,001
Location
North Texas
It is with a heavy heart that I find I must post this on the Forum. A dear friend of mine, who was also one of the long time moderators of this Forum, passed away a few days ago. I well remember the day some five years ago that Festus2 informed me he had been diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis. That horrible condition took a dear friend and excellent moderator from us. If after you read this post, if you feel like I do, may I encourage you to make a donation to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation, http://www.pulmonaryfibrosis.org/.

Please allow me a paragraph or two to honor Festus2. As you can see on his Forum bio, Festus2 was Canadian and lived in British Columbia. He was a retired elementary school principal. One interesting point of his life - as Canada is part of the Commonwealth - Festus2 and his wife (also an educator) traded positions and homes with a pair of Australian educators for five years. Festus2 also enjoyed a glass of wine. My wife and I spent a wonderful week with Festus2 and his wife in the Okanogan Valley of British Columbia, wandering around only a few of the some 900 wineries and tasting rooms plus taking a ride on the Kettle Valley Steam Railway. Festus2 never heard of some Southern edibles such as hominy and blackeyed peas. We were able to introduce Festus2 to the elegant taste of blackeyed peas, but never got the chance to introduce him to yellow hominy. I always wondered what he would have thought of grits.

Festus2 loved curling. I used to kid him about the time his senior team beat Bernie Sparks' team at the local curling rink. Sparks was a Canadian Olympic Curling Team leader some years ago. I was always proud that Festus2 was the skip when his team beat Bernie!

Festus2 was the person who you would meet and within five minutes, it was like you had known him all your life. He was kind, insightful, and had a very dry sense of humor. He loved to curl, fish, camp, and share stories (over wine, of course). If we could all just follow the example that Festus2 set for us, the World would be a better place.

Thank all of you for granting me this chance to pay a tribute, as insignificant as it is, to a dear departed friend.

Regards,
Ron

P.S. - May I request a moderator to put a sticky on this post to keep it at the top for at least a time period?
 
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Geo,

Thank you for the sad news. Festus2 (Richard) was a good friend to many on the forum. His wit, insight, ability to look at the bright side of almost any situation (probably from his training dealing with elementary age children and their parents) were strong attributes he shared with this forum.

Not long before he was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, he came up with the hairbrained idea to change his profile name to something "more fitting".... Many made suggestions, some thought the change wasn't a good idea.

In the end, Richard decided to not change his profile name. For any of the "old timers" on the forum, Festus2 had become a part of the foundation for what this forum had become. He will be missed, as a friend, as a great guy to ask for advice, as someone who found a way to share good feelings in situations that seemed so bleak.

He is truly a "cornerstone" for this forum and he will be missed by many who consider him a friend and by many new members who may never have known him, but benefit from the forum he helped to create for all of us.
 
I would like to add my condolences to his family. Festus2 was a very knowledgeable and informative member on this forum. He was one of the first to welcome me on here and answered a lot of my questions. May he rest in peace.
 
Richard was the one that sent me a PM asking if I would consider becoming a moderator here. It was an honor to accept and I remember a few phone conversations with him, He truly was a gentleman in every sense of the word. He was an educator and I’m sure everyone here can agree he taught us a lot more than just RV knowledge. Richard if your watching over us (as I’m sure you are) I’m staying OFF the blue page like you asked.
 
Festus2, grace and peace. Your legacy here on this forum is legendary and your touches are evident everywhere. Thank you for setting the bar of excellence high. You will be missed, but not forgotten.
 
So long Festus2 - the Forum you helped moderate will be poorer for the loss of your wit, your knowledge - and your patience dealing with the many personalities embodied here. I have missed your regular posts and responses here of late. The DW and I had wondered if you had been ill. Your passing is sad news. So, a belated thank you for your advice and wise council and, of course, condolences to your family.
Jack & Marty
 
GEO, Howdy;

Thanks for the tribute to Festus2, fitting it comes on Memorial Day, known as
Remembrance Day in a lot of the former British Empire.

He will be missed.

hankaye
 
JRTJH -

I remember asking Richard why the Festus2 handle. Evidently, in the early days of this Forum, there was an early user using Festus. That is why he was "Festus2". OK, but how did someone from BC settle on Festus or even Festus2? The story goes back to a faculty skit at his school. The skit was an adaptation of "Gunsmoke" (for you young ones, that was a very popular TV show back in the 1950s-60s). No, the principal didn't get to play Marshall Dillon, he got to play Festus. For some reason, this skit came to Richard's mind when he joined the Keystone Forum, but because of an earlier user, he became "Festus2". I will also note that Richard did not like his name used on the Forum and insisted on being addressed as "Festus2". However, I think he would approve now.

Another story, as the moderators probably know, Richard loved curling. He played in the senior leagues including this past winter. However, in these past two seasons (one winter), Richard was forced to use the stick to deliver the stone. He still played the skip position but could not do the usual yelling at the sweepers and the stone.

As some of the older members know, my background is in geology and geophysics. I remember having a weeklong email discussion with Richard on the subject of curling stones and how the cooling of the magma and formation of the mineral crystal could in fact affect the reaction of the stone to dimples on the ice. It was a great discussion that we both enjoyed. During one of our visits, he actually borrowed a stone from the curling rink and we turned it over in the dining room and looked at it with a rock loupe! Hmm, maybe TMI?

Oh, and JRTJH, Richard remembered our "gray poopon" series of posts! He would always chuckle and shake his head at adding olive oil to the black tank. BTW, even with our new fiver, I still add Wash Soda (sodium carbonate) or Olive Oil to the black tank regularly.

Hankaye - Thank you. It is great to hear from you!

Chuckster57 - I remember when Richard recruited you as a moderator. From your early posts, I agreed with him that you would be a fine moderator.

Safe travels to all,
Ron
 
There is a time when we'll all have to pull into that RV park in the in the sky. Let's consider it a trip with no worries about flat tires, running out of fuel, and the campfire is always burning brightly, and it sounds like most importantly, the wine is always good!
Farewell Festus2
 
Geo - thanks for explaining where the festus2 handle originated. I was wondering but probably wouldn’t have asked. I am a relative newbie to the forum, but sincerily appreciate the background about festus2. It exemplifies the rich personalities and extensive wisdom that characterize this forum. Thank you for taking the time to write what I expect was a difficult post.
 
Festus2, The man, the myth and my mentor.

When I first joined the forum my sense of humor rubbed a few members the wrong way and suggested a ban. I guess you could say Richard sat me down like one of his students and tried to straighten this old dog out. He must have been very good at his job cause I'm still around. He later sent me a PM asking for permission to call me on the phone. I immediately went back through my posts to see who I could have offended before I replied to his PM. I thought he was joking when he asked if I would be willing to replace one of the moderators that was looking to retire. I am sure that every one of our moderators will tell you that Richard was the one you went to if you had a problem or a question.

Rest in peace Festus2, You will be truly missed around the campfire.
My heart and prayers go out to Donna in her time of grief, Hank
 
I am very sorry to hear of the passing of Richard. His presence on this forum will be missed. My thoughts and prayers are with Richard's family. Rest in Peace Sir and Thank You for all you have done. Sincerely, Jim
 
Haven't been here for a bit, but just saw this and he will be very missed. We almost connected in real life once, but the timing was off. But I enjoyed his posts and his moderation.

This is very saddening.
 
I am late to this thread; I was in FL and had no idea of the thread. I was told about Festus2 by one of the moderators during a conversation about something else some time ago but did not know of the thread.

This is belated but just want to say that Festus2 provided a lot of insight for folks. I did not get to meet him but I did share several PMs with him during his tenure. He was thoughtful and a good moderator. I really appreciate the posts talking about the personal nature of our members. Web stuff, forums, have a lot of rhetoric, and sometimes things that we respond to or appreciate, but never know who that person is. Geo provided insight that I truly appreciate; about a person on this forum that we would otherwise not know anything about.

My thoughts and condolences go out to the family and friends - late (I'm sorry and had no idea this thread existed).

I would also say that one of the things I hate about "forums" is folks that hide behind anonymity and fire things out. It is NICE to know who you are. It's nice to know some of your details. I think that is what makes this forum more special than many - I share lots of stuff; I think if I'm asking/telling you something related to your family/friends/safety, you need to know who I am. Anyway, Festus2 will be missed.
 
Sorry to hear this news and even though we never met him in person, our communication with him was wonderful. He was a caring and thoughtful moderator, who will be missed on this forum. Our deepest sympathies to his family and friends.
 

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