In Memory of WildWill

[Bry]

Howdy y’all,

I wanted to take a moment to personally & publically acknowledge & cherish the personal, academic & even financial contributions a previous forum member has made to this space. 

He was known by the forum name WildWill, or Larry Kealey and recently passed this March. His passing saddened me much and I remember keenly the timing being aptly right after our Sun gifted us our largest flare this solar cycle.. 

His Memorial was yesterday, and he is now in the skies above us thanks to his adventurous sky-diving buddies and family.

Everytime I see someone say “howdy”, or ask about filter lens or equipment used to view our sun, or tackle a theoretical physics problem I think fondly of WildWills knowledgeable and enthusiastic replies.

I think he wanted us to remember and respect each of our own & each other’s skills & ability to learn & understand new or difficult topics that affect us all, especially if driven by internal motivation & curiosity & experience.. And that even if we didn’t have a background in traditional education, each of one of us still brings valuable insight to the table.

I am always impressed with what I am able to learn from this forum from such diverse backgrounds & notice when silence befalls a member.

I hope WildWills contributions of light, expertise, adventure, and laughter to the forum and will be remembered & sorely missed.

I thought this would be a good space to say something or add a memorial to Larry/WildWill if anyone else has something to share.

As Newbie once said, 

“Vale WildWill”

May your spirit Rest In Peace,

and your contributions to illuminate this space,

be acknowledged & remembered by those who now shine brighter because of it. 

Bry

[dave]

Sorry to hear this news. I was surprised when he did not respond to a comment a few months ago.

One never knows the real age (or indeed ***!) of members of forums like this. One hopes that any death was not premature or unpleasant.

I would have surmised from his tone that WildWill was early middle age. (?)

Surprised to see a three-letter word for 'gender' asterixed out! 

[Newbie]

Dave: Will was 58 years old. He passed 7 March.

He had been in poor health for quite a while.

He truly was a sun worshipper.

Bry: Thank you for the kind words.

To whoever: I didn’t look up who put the broken heart. I have often wondered at their use. I find them quite childish and rude, particularly when someone has passed. Whoever you are you can remove it should you so wish!

N.

 

 

Edited May 28, 2023 by Newbie

[SpaceWeather5464]

Rip WildWill

[3gMike]

16 hours ago, Bry said:

Howdy y’all,

I wanted to take a moment to personally & publically acknowledge & cherish the personal, academic & even financial contributions a previous forum member has made to this space. 

He was known by the forum name WildWill, or Larry Kealey and recently passed this March. His passing saddened me much and I remember keenly the timing being aptly right after our Sun gifted us our largest flare this solar cycle.. 

His Memorial was yesterday, and he is now in the skies above us thanks to his adventurous sky-diving buddies and family.

Everytime I see someone say “howdy”, or ask about filter lens or equipment used to view our sun, or tackle a theoretical physics problem I think fondly of WildWills knowledgeable and enthusiastic replies.

I think he wanted us to remember and respect each of our own & each other’s skills & ability to learn & understand new or difficult topics that affect us all, especially if driven by internal motivation & curiosity & experience.. And that even if we didn’t have a background in traditional education, each of one of us still brings valuable insight to the table.

I am always impressed with what I am able to learn from this forum from such diverse backgrounds & notice when silence befalls a member.

I hope WildWills contributions of light, expertise, adventure, and laughter to the forum and will be remembered & sorely missed.

I thought this would be a good space to say something or add a memorial to Larry/WildWill if anyone else has something to share.

As Newbie once said, 

“Vale WildWill”

May your spirit Rest In Peace,

and your contributions to illuminate this space,

be acknowledged & remembered by those who now shine brighter because of it. 

Bry

Thanks for a very eloquent testimonial to Will.

There is not much more I can add to that, but I just wanted to say that Will became a very good friend to me and, despite his own health problems, he found time to offer me personal support.

I miss him.

[Sam Warfel]

3 hours ago, Newbie said:

To whoever: I didn’t look up who put the broken heart. I have often wondered at their use. I find them quite childish and rude, particularly when someone has passed. Whoever you are you can remove it should you so wish!

I believe this was done with the intent to show that they are sad about WW's passing, not to downvote the post. Likewise with the "sad" reactions.
That makes much more sense to me.

Rest in Peace WildWill.

❤️

[hamateur 1953]

As a relative newcomer and certainly naive in the area of advanced physics I found Will also to be patient as well and avoid embarrassing me when I really goofed!! The dude had class! I sure miss him as do many I have communicated with off the boards. Mike/Hagrid.  In addition to his accomplishments he ranks as one of the most inspirational guys I have ever met over my seventy years on this hunk of rock!  

Edited May 29, 2023 by hamateur 1953

[Newbie]

6 hours ago, Sam Warfel said:

I believe this was done with the intent to show that they are sad about WW's passing, not to downvote the post. Likewise with the "sad" reactions.
That makes much more sense to me.

Rest in Peace WildWill.

❤️

I guess I’ve seen too many broken hearts.

Fair point Sam 😊