25 years ago today/Fuck You Helicopters

Well, it really wasn't the helicopter's fault, but such a senseless waste of life needs to have a culprit.

25 years ago today Bill Graham, along with his long-time friend & personal pilot Steve "Killer" Kahn and his close friend Melissa Gold died in that damned helicopter crash.

That tragic event affected many people that knew those folks well. Personally I didn't know any of them well at all, but that event changed the entire course of my life. Looking back, positively or negatively changed is something I have often contemplated over these years. Most likely some of each, and I'm certainly not complaining about how things turned out for me, but one way or another my life would have been dramatically different if Bill had listened to all advice and not gotten into that helicopter on such a stormy night.

One of the things that Bill Graham preached to his staff constantly over the years was that in all situations, and especially if you're not sure how to proceed, always use common sense to dictate a decision. How ironic that he didn't follow his own mantra and allowed ego & expediency to dictate his actions that night, and he paid the ultimate price for that mistake.

So because of that one decision by someone who barely knew my name, instead of being a BGP management lifer I ultimately became a full-time teacher.

Ah, the strange vicissitudes of life.

And on it goes.

He was far from perfect, but he was larger than life. The most dynamic individual I've ever been around, he had a great business mind who believed that quality was always the key (rare for most business minds), he was a great manager & leader and he was a far more thoughtful, generous & kind person than he ever wanted people to know.

We still miss ya' Bill.