Loss of a Friend

Long time member and friend of the chapter Robert "Bob" Harris passed away yesterday.

Bob was one of the original board of directors when the chapter was first formed in 1966.  To say Bob was unique would be an understatement:  he was one of those guys who knew a little bit about everything and a whole lot more about a lot of things than most.  Personally, when I first started hanging out as teenager at chapter events he was one of those guys who was always willing to help you out with anything you needed when it came to fly fishing--or anything else for that matter.

He'd always smile.  He'd always be in the center of the conversation.  He looked 30 years younger than he really was (I want those genes!).  Recently, he spent a lot of time at the Peninsula working with the park on a variety of plant and animal projects.  And whatever he was talking about was always "on the thing".  You know what I'm talking about if you've ever spent time with Bob.

Bob was a cool guy.  I'll miss seeing him at Bob Evans on a weekend morning with my family.  I'll miss driving by his house and honking and having him wave back as he got in his car to go somewhere.

I feel blessed by the relationships I've had, and continue to have with chapter members like Bob.  Many of whom were decades older than me- - - but we shared that common bond of flyfishing or flytying so age really didn't matter much anyway.

I hope he finds that place where the trout will always rise, where there are never windknots in his leader and the water flows cool and clean forever.

Rest easy my friend.


Erik Cronk
Chapter President