Re: AGA memorial fund for Vicki Costley (fwd)

[Erik Olson <erik@thekrib.com>]

You guys rock.  After all the stuff going on lately, I just didn't have
the energy to go on another 2-page diatribe, but you guys all came to the 
same conclusion as I did in just a couple e-mails!

This kind of reminds me of when one of the Aquabotanic people came and 
e-mailed asking for a group discount on the aquascaping contest last year.  
Or when Michael Rubin e-mailed, asking that the AGA honor Dave Gomberg.  
Except that this has even LESS relevance.

You hit on the major points: 1) she wasn't an AGA member, 2) lots of other 
great people, 3) administration nightmare, 4) delicate reply to not piss 
off AB people.

I would only add to Scott's "how" and "who" that I don't see a "why"!  OK, 
this is some kind of award in honor of a person, but why exactly does a 
particular person get the award?  Is it for working on the convention?  
Aquascaping?  Being an all-around swell-guy?

Finally I'd also add that $25 isn't squat.  So it's more of an 
administration nightmare than anything else.

  - Erik

On Tue, 2 Dec 2003, Karen Randall wrote:

> 
> Cheryl wrote:
> 
> > I don't mean to be mean, but it makes me feel icky to be asked to make
> > gestures for someone who died when I didn't know them. I had personal,
> > albeit e-mail contact with Merrill Cohen. I had never heard of Vicki
> > until she died.
> 
> I'm glad you said it, Cheryl.  I started writing something about Merrill,
> then erased it to go back to less personal reasons not to do this.  But if
> ANYONE deserves something like this, it would be Merrill.  He actively
> contributed to the hobby in MAJOR ways for 60-odd years.  I don't know Vicky
> at all, even by reputation.  I have no doubt that she was a delightful
> person, and her death is tragic.  But she's not the one putting us in this
> predicament... It's the folks from these webs sites.  I suspect that, out of
> our own membership, we have lost other nice people who have helped other
> people.  Another AGA'er that immediately comes to mind is Jare Sausaman.  He
> was KEY to the reoganization of AGA.  We did for him the same sort of thing
> we did for Merrill, with a tribute in TAG, and a mention of an appropriate
> place to send donations if people wanted.
> 
> But even there it's different with this gal.  She wasn't even a member of
> AGA herself.  How many AGA members would have a clue who she was?  I'm sure
> the only people who would know her are people who are members of both AGA
> _AND_ these web groups.  And they already know.  ... Certainly the hobby as
> a whole has lost other major contributors...  Al Castro died within the past
> year or two and I don't even think we mentioned his passing in TAG.
> 
> I suspect that they don't even realize the ramifications of what they are
> asking, though, and the response to them probably deserves some tact.
> Another possible solution... Did she belong to a local aquarium
> organization?  If so, her name would mean more to those folks, and $400
> would go farther in a local setting.  Or... How about suggesting that they
> donate them money to Wilma Duncan?  I don't know if you folks know who she
> is, but she has started a single-handed program to help poverty level
> children in Appalachia set up small aquariums in their homes.  She collects
> donated equipment, plants and fish and then distributes them.  $400 would
> probably mean a LOT to her program.
> 
> Karen
> 
> 
>   ------------------
>   To unsubscribe from this list, e-mail majordomo@thekrib.com
>   with "unsubscribe aga-sc" in the body of the message.
>   Old messages are available at http://lists.thekrib.com/aga-sc
>   When asked, log in as username is "aga-sc", and password "incorp".
> 

-- 
Erik Olson
erik at thekrib dot com


  ------------------
  To unsubscribe from this list, e-mail majordomo@thekrib.com
  with "unsubscribe aga-sc" in the body of the message.
  Old messages are available at http://lists.thekrib.com/aga-sc
  When asked, log in as username is "aga-sc", and password "incorp".