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Another great shock.
https://www.gehlbachandroyse.com/obi...?obId=10694612
*deep breath*
This is quite honestly the hardest post I've ever had to write and I've had twenty-four hours to think about the wording which has not made it remotely easier.
So. We received news on Thursday on the sudden passing of one of the finest, nicest people I've ever met.
John Bierly, known throughout Highlander fandom and far beyond as the kind of person we all secretly wish to be, passed away suddenly at his home in Indiana this week. His family reached out to tell us of the tragic news and you will understand that they have requested privacy as they come to terms with their loss.
Before anyone asks, we don't have many details but on request of John's aunt we are sharing the confirmed, formal obituary and info on the service below
John was like a little brother not just to me, but to us all - impossibly youthful and optimistic, smart, caring and talented. I will write a longer post, the kind he richly deserves, as soon as I am physically capable of processing this.
In the short term, my intention, if possible, is to journey up to Indiana this weekend where it will be my regret, my honour and my complete and utter privilege to represent Highlander WorldWide on Monday.
- John Mosby
This is quite honestly the hardest post I've ever had to write and I've had twenty-four hours to think about the wording which has not made it remotely easier.
So. We received news on Thursday on the sudden passing of one of the finest, nicest people I've ever met.
John Bierly, known throughout Highlander fandom and far beyond as the kind of person we all secretly wish to be, passed away suddenly at his home in Indiana this week. His family reached out to tell us of the tragic news and you will understand that they have requested privacy as they come to terms with their loss.
Before anyone asks, we don't have many details but on request of John's aunt we are sharing the confirmed, formal obituary and info on the service below
John was like a little brother not just to me, but to us all - impossibly youthful and optimistic, smart, caring and talented. I will write a longer post, the kind he richly deserves, as soon as I am physically capable of processing this.
In the short term, my intention, if possible, is to journey up to Indiana this weekend where it will be my regret, my honour and my complete and utter privilege to represent Highlander WorldWide on Monday.
- John Mosby
Fandom is a funny creature. You meet people because of a shared interest - people you would never know in life otherwise. Some people drift away, while others become friends - even family - beyond the fandom.
John Bierly was that person. The very first time I met him, I was sitting next to him at a Highlander convention charity auction. He was bidding for a seat at Elizabeth Gracen's table, and there was another person equally determined to get the seat. John's comment to me...a complete stranger at the time...was that it was just money. He didn't need to go to college anyhow. As it turned out, the other person bidding against him had been trying to get the seat at the table FOR John, and didn't realize who she was bidding against.
From there, we became friends, discovering that we lived only a couple hours apart in Indiana. I knew John was a magnificent writer, so when I was tapped to be the editor of the Adrian Paul Fan Club magazine (back in the days before social media offered such a direct line to celebrities), John was immediately my first-and-only choice as Assistant Editor.
The fringe benefit of this choice was the quarterly drives to Illinois where our graphic/layout designer lived. Hours and hours and hours in the car for all those trips. And the one thing that stood out to me, the one thing about John that drew me like a magnet, was his enthusiasm for all things Highlander, his lust for life, and his positive way of looking at everything. He became not only my friend, but my little brother.
That's not an uncommon feeling, I've come to discover. Everyone who knew John felt the effects of his enthusiasm and his passion for all things Highlander. Even after the show ended and many people moved on to other things, John shifted his sights to the work of the PEACE Fund, and continued working with Adrian and Ethan Dettanmeir from that day forward to bring awareness to children's causes around the world.
You will be missed, my Little Brother. And you will always be loved.
~Jenni Bohn
Former Editor, APFC Worldwide magazine
John Bierly was that person. The very first time I met him, I was sitting next to him at a Highlander convention charity auction. He was bidding for a seat at Elizabeth Gracen's table, and there was another person equally determined to get the seat. John's comment to me...a complete stranger at the time...was that it was just money. He didn't need to go to college anyhow. As it turned out, the other person bidding against him had been trying to get the seat at the table FOR John, and didn't realize who she was bidding against.
From there, we became friends, discovering that we lived only a couple hours apart in Indiana. I knew John was a magnificent writer, so when I was tapped to be the editor of the Adrian Paul Fan Club magazine (back in the days before social media offered such a direct line to celebrities), John was immediately my first-and-only choice as Assistant Editor.
The fringe benefit of this choice was the quarterly drives to Illinois where our graphic/layout designer lived. Hours and hours and hours in the car for all those trips. And the one thing that stood out to me, the one thing about John that drew me like a magnet, was his enthusiasm for all things Highlander, his lust for life, and his positive way of looking at everything. He became not only my friend, but my little brother.
That's not an uncommon feeling, I've come to discover. Everyone who knew John felt the effects of his enthusiasm and his passion for all things Highlander. Even after the show ended and many people moved on to other things, John shifted his sights to the work of the PEACE Fund, and continued working with Adrian and Ethan Dettanmeir from that day forward to bring awareness to children's causes around the world.
You will be missed, my Little Brother. And you will always be loved.
~Jenni Bohn
Former Editor, APFC Worldwide magazine
https://www.gehlbachandroyse.com/obi...?obId=10694612
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