My father Steven passed away recently after a short and painful bout with pancreatic cancer. Along with a few old friends of his, many of my closest friends called or visited to help organize matters as you might expect in a situation like that. Similarly a very large number of Apache members wrote quite heartfelt emails of support and condolences.
But what struck me the most – surprised me, actually – was the knock on the door from the flower delivery. It took me a moment to realize that the ASF had sent me condolence flowers directly!
I had listed “in lieu of flowers” in the original death notice, so I wasn’t expecting anything like that. It was quite a pleasant surprise, since it was just the right kind of thing to cheer up the house at that point.
More to the point, it underscores how important community is at Apache. Not only do I know I can count on the individual support of the many friends – much like family – that I’ve met there over the years, but the ASF as an organization has a heart for it’s membership and individual contributors as well.
In any case, many thanks to my Apache family.
Obligatory note: I’m also looking forward to seeing many of my readers at ApacheCon NA in Portland, OR next week! I’ll be giving a talk on open source branding, along with many many other Apache family members.
P.S. No disrespect nor allusion to any Native American Apaches or related persons or tribes is meant.