In Memory of Josh Whipple

[SkyDolphin 0]

It was nice meeting you ever so briefly, Raistlin, as you were walking out the door Saturday night. It sounds like things went well on your little excursion.

We arrived at the Kangaroo and Kiwi around 10:30 (we had a Bar Mitzvah to attend earlier in the evening) but they wouldn't let us in because it was so crowded. We sat in the car just outside waiting to see a familiar face and then followed that familiar face to Todd's house.

I'm sure we will have more opportunity to talk this weekend. When do you arrive in town? Will you go to Snohomish at all?



Rhonda

[mikeee 0]

i'm hoping to fly up for josh's memorial,
i got an email saying there would be one on feb27.
but i can't get any confirmation, or exact details.
i'll be flying in from denver, and i need as much factual info as possible.
thanks,
mikeee
please email to d5thangel@aol

crazy, NOT stupid............

[mikeee 0]

have known josh since my first or second jump(8-1/2 years)
he was the archtypical "friend you could ALWAYS count on"
last saw him at lost prairie in '01.
he was smilin' then, and thats how i'll always remember him.
shit!!
josh, i wish i could have been there for ya.
rasdfnad( the rigger and skydiver formerly known as ditch

crazy, NOT stupid............

[SkyDaemon 0]

Last I checked the Memorial will be:
2:30pm
Horticulture Center at the UW Campus in Seattle.

-=Raistlin

find / -name jumpers -print; cat jumpers $USER > manifest; cd /dev/airplane; more altitude; make jump; cd /pub; more beer;

[SkyDaemon 0]

Rhonda,

I apologize for the brevity of our meeting... I wish I'd stayed at the party longer and gotten to talk to you for awhile. I'll definitely be back this weekend, and plan to be in Seattle Sat afternoon, and most of Sunday.

I hope the Bar-Mitzvah went well. (Mazel Tov)

I look forward to seeing you at the Memorial.

-=Raistlin

find / -name jumpers -print; cat jumpers $USER > manifest; cd /dev/airplane; more altitude; make jump; cd /pub; more beer;

[SkyDaemon 0]

Does anyone know if there will be a post-memorial jump? (either at Snohomish or off an object. The moon will still be pretty bright I suspect).

-=Raistlin

find / -name jumpers -print; cat jumpers $USER > manifest; cd /dev/airplane; more altitude; make jump; cd /pub; more beer;

[NWFlyer 2]

Quote

Does anyone know if there will be a post-memorial jump? (either at Snohomish or off an object. The moon will still be pretty bright I suspect).

-=Raistlin

Not sure, but I'm sure there will be plenty of pre-memorial jumping this weekend. Seems like the NW is the only place with (consistently) blue skies these days!

/me immediately knocks wood

[SkyDaemon 0]

Krisanne,

Quote

/me immediately knocks wood

You're such an IRCer ;-)

I remember talking to Josh about the 'old days' of computers and online chat before the www was invented... those were the days. He used to make fun of me by doing old man impressions and saying "back in my day..." Those were good times

Sorry I missed you this past weekend, I hope to see you at this weekend.

-=Raistlin

find / -name jumpers -print; cat jumpers $USER > manifest; cd /dev/airplane; more altitude; make jump; cd /pub; more beer;

[NWFlyer 2]

Quote

You're such an IRCer ;-)

Busted....

But hey, it works with some IM clients, too.

[FLYBERT71 0]

Raistlin,
Nothing planned but you know what it's like hearding cats. I'm sure that if things are over soon enough then we can put something together.And yes the moon should be bright since its not full until Thursday.

"If you have time to panic, you have time to do something more productive."
Josh Whipple 7/15/70-2/10/05

[SkyDaemon 0]

I bet we can work something out. Maybe on Saturday. I'm hoping to do some Memorial jumps to Josh on Sat night, I need to coordinate that though...

-=Raistlin

find / -name jumpers -print; cat jumpers $USER > manifest; cd /dev/airplane; more altitude; make jump; cd /pub; more beer;

[SkyDolphin 0]

I'm looking forward to spending some time getting to know you, Raistlin. I'll be at the barn riding on Saturday but may stop by Snohomish for a while. If I don't see you Saturday then definately Sunday.

Rhonda

[ACMESkydiver 0]

In case anyone missed it when it came out (I did ) attached is Josh's obituary.

Details on his memorial Sunday were posted a few posts up. ^

Edit to add: Crap. Sorry, Word doc, might be hard to open. Let me cut and paste here :



Whipple, Joshua Joseph



Joshua Joseph WHIPPLE Age 34. Born July 15, 1970, died February 10, 2005. He attended Ingraham High School and graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in Psychology in 2000. He was an avid Skydiver and BASE Jumper and was a member of the United States Parachute Association for 14 years. During that time he made approximately 2100 Skydives and about 100 BASE Jumps. Josh and his good friend, Todd Higley, pioneered BASE Jumping in the State of Washington. The two of them spent a lot of time hiking around the State scouting good jump sites. If you've heard of "Stubby," you can thank Josh's big toe! Despite the perceived danger by some regarding the sport, Josh preached safety and took great care in his jumps and looked out for the well being of others at all times. He had a razor sharp wit, unlimited curiosity, was a lifelong student of philosophy and had an endless reserve of compassion for others. He is predeceased by his father, Steven and survived by his mother, Sally, his brothers Peter and Andrew (Anne) and his nieces, Mishu, Molly and Andrea, his nephew, Maxwell, and is also survived byBianca Madison. He will be greatly missed by his family and his many friends and colleagues. A celebration of his life will be held at 2:30 pm on Sunday, February 27th in the NHS Hall at the Center for Urban Horticulture on the U. of W. campus. In lieu of flowers, remembrances in his honor can be made to Snohomish County Search & Rescue.
Published in print on 2/20/2005.

I'm not sure who wrote this up, but it's very nice.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[Guest]

Two weeks ago today...

See you at the UW on Sunday.

mh

.

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[SkyDaemon 0]

Thank you for posting that, it's well composed and celebrates him. I look forward to seeing everyone there on Sunday. It'll be excellent and helpful for us all to get together and hold one another, raise a glass, and spout off a few jokes.

See you in a few days.

-=Raistlin

find / -name jumpers -print; cat jumpers $USER > manifest; cd /dev/airplane; more altitude; make jump; cd /pub; more beer;

[jose 0]

So, just to clarifly, there is a get-together for this Sat, or Sun? Was it Josh's wishes to be cremated, and if so, will there be a jump in his Honor? I hope to meet you Raistlin, you are a prophet for Josh's memory.

B.

[SkyDaemon 0]

Jose,
It was Josh's wish to be cremated. There is definitely a get together at the Memorial this Sunday at the Horticulture Center at the UW campus in Seattle at 2:30pm. (1430). I'm certain after the service everyone will adjourn to some other location (perhaps the K&K? Skydive Snohomish?)

I'm not certain about any get togethers on Saturday, however it would certainly not surprise me if there wasn't going to be one. Skydive Snohomish would be the likely gathering spot. I'll post any information I find out about a get togethers and Memorial Jumps.

Thank you B, I really appreciate your kind words. I'll definitely be there at the service on Sunday and plan to arrive in Seattle Saturday afternoon. I'll be nice to see everyone again.

As much as you can during these hard times: be well!

-=Raistlin

find / -name jumpers -print; cat jumpers $USER > manifest; cd /dev/airplane; more altitude; make jump; cd /pub; more beer;

[karenmeal 0]

There will be an ash dive later on in the year at Skydive Snohomish. I think that since so many people will want to be on it, the plan is to wait for more reliable weather, and possibly (?) bigger planes..

I'm not sure whats going on after the memorial on Sunday..

"Life is a temporary victory over the causes which induce death." - Sylvester Graham

[NWFlyer 2]

Here's a link to the location for the memorial service on Sunday at 2:30:

http://depts.washington.edu/urbhort/html/info/contact.html

[rasquared 0]

Raistlin, I'm responding to your post, but much of what I say is directed to all who have made posts.

I am Josh's middle brother, Andy. I have had the honor and pleasure of meeting many of you already and look forward to meeting many more of you soon. I, like many of you, am still numb and will always have an ache in my heart for my bro. In the last several days, many of you have said things that really capture Josh's essence. Raistlin, you in particular, have so eloquently and articulately and in many ways very accurately captured who Josh was. All of the posted words have helped me and other family members cope with our grief. Most of you know that my dad died in November. Losing Josh, especially in this way, is so much worse. This totally sucks! But, we have to keep on keepin' on.

As I mentioned earlier, I have had the opportunity to meet many of you already. Last Friday, I went up to the DZ and met several folks. Saturday, I was able to go up to Index with a group to watch 9 BASE Jumpers do a jump in Josh's memory. That was such an honor to be there and it was a wonderful sight to behold. I always knew my brother had good friends, but until this weekend, I didn't realize what a tight knit community you all are. I am Josh's brother and we were very close, but it is truly heart warming to know that he had a lot of other brothers as well as some sisters out there who loved him just as much. It is really a beautiful thing. Josh's spirit will always be up at Snohomish and with all of his BASE friends.

An ash dive has been discussed for the spring - maybe this summer on his birthday, but those details will have to wait until later - getting through Sunday is the goal of the moment. Josh and I first talked of "doing a skydive" about 15 years ago. I never followed through and he did and, understandably got hooked. I plan on participating in this particular jump - we'll finally get to jump together...

Again, thank you all for your kind words, sympathies and support. It is appreciated more than words can express.

Andy Whipple

(PS - the service starts at 2:30. The program will run for about an hour and then there will be beverages and open mic time for another hour or so.)

[TomAiello 26]

I took this photo of Josh a while ago.

I wish I had a chance to take another.

-- Tom Aiello

Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com
SnakeRiverBASE.com

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Quote

I took this photo of Josh a while ago.

I wish I had a chance to take another.

Tom that photo is great; when you open it to it's full size, you can just almost see his eyes, and it looks as if he is looking right at you.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[sky1dive 0]

Andy,

If you read my post from last week you will know I met your brother in 1996 and enjoyed many good times skydiving with him.

Unfortunately, we have some things in common. You have lost your bother and father in recent years as I have lost my younger sister and my mother. Times like these you are going through now can seem unbearable, but being strong for yourself and your family will pull you through.

I am very sorry to hear of Josh's passing.

Best Regards,

Brian Giboney

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Bump, as the memorial is in a few hours...

I will see you all there.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[Guest]

Count on it.

mh

.

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."