A passing friend

A friend and fellow employee passed away yesterday afternoon. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer a relatively short time ago and succumbed to his illness.

Randall Kapp worked in a different department but our jobs overlapped numerous times and we worked together on a few projects. He lived quite close to me and we both commuted on the West Coast Express train, sometimes sitting together to discuss work, computers, ipods and music.

He was a nice man with a family and is one of many people that deserved a longer life. He was also a talented musician that enjoyed jamming with friends and even invited me over to participate in one of his basement sessions although my contributions were extremely limited that night.

There are people we meet that fall into one of two categories; good guys or bad guys. Good guys are people you relate to, people you enjoy talking to and find interesting and entertaining. Bad guys are people you don’t like and go out of your way to avoid. Randall was one of the good guys.

Although we were not close friends we had a number of interests in common and I could tell he was passionate about his music, job, family and life. He cared about those that were close to him, provided a comfortable home for his family and seemed to have a great relationship with his kids. He was a good dad.

People like Randall shouldn’t leave us early but should be offered an extension if they wish to carry on regardless of a disease that threatens. His cancer diagnosis should have included the choice for him to ignore it and continue living his life. Unfortunately, that’s not the way it works and Randall decided to stop his cancer treatment when his situation became apparent. I’m hoping he passed away peacefully, painlessly and surrounded by those he loved and those that loved him of which there were probably many.

Have a safe journey my friend and I’ll save a seat on the train for you.

If you knew Randall please share your thoughts by adding a comment to this blog post