In memoriam
Jack's passing has been on my mind, so I thought I'd copy here a comment made elsewhere:
Jack led my first BR Gateway (i.e., beginner's) meeting (in 2001), after which he comforted me and confirmed that my previous (first) BDSM experience had actually been an assault (in which someone had both violated a limit set in our pre-scene negotiation and taken advantage of an area of inadequate negotiation on my part as a newbie). He made a big difference in terms of my ability to move forward with involvement in the lifestyle.
Although I was fortunate enough to have attended a few parties at his home (and what an incredible dungeon he had!), to me, Jack was more a nodding acquaintance than a mentor or friend. (I know I needn't have been intimidated by him, but I was always reluctant to approach, so in awe was I of his stature in the community.) And, of course, I attended many of his presentations at BR and at the annual Master-slave Conferences.
Although I am not among those closest to him who are grieving the most, I grieve nonetheless. He was a towering figure in the community, one whose contributions will affect people, directly or indirectly, for generations. He gave (and sacrificed) so much for so many. This loss is simply incalculable.
P.S. You can find the most up-to-date information regarding arrangements on this Black Rose Web page.
And here, you'll find a lovely vanilla tribute as well, from which this great quote brought a smile to my face:
Few things made him as happy as thinking about spinning iron balls spewing boiling mustard gas. At the same time, he was dedicated to eradicating these terrible weapons, which just shows that you have to know the devil to get rid of him.