[TAC] K8DD remembered

[Ian - K8MM]

Well said Kurt. He really did treat people the way he'd want to be treated.

My subconscious mind still hasn't quite figured out he isn't with us. 
The other day I had a question of a technical nature and thought instead 
of using google, I'd just call Hank up and see what he had to say. I'll 
miss him terribly until the day I die.

73,
Ian

Kurt Meyers wrote:
> Dear Ian:
>     I am moved by your tremendous testimony to Hank and your acknowledgment 
> of the pain of losing him. I'll share with you what I wrote to Kathy. I'll 
> remember Hank not because for every glass of beer I drank, Hank drank a 
> barrel (although that may be true). Rather I'll remember Hank because he 
> never "talked down" to me. My knowledge of electronics could have fit into 
> the tip of Hank's little finger. Unlike others, Hank never smirked when I 
> asked the most elementary of technical questions. He was always 
> understanding and helpful to me at a level I could understand.
>
> 73, Kurt
>
> -----Original Message----- 
> From: Ian - K8MM
> Sent: Wednesday, November 17, 2010 2:19 AM
> To: Thumb (MI) Area Contesters (and DX'ers)
> Subject: [TAC] K8DD remembered
>
> Hank Kohl or K8DD as he was known by many of us, was my best friend, a
> willing accomplice, and a father figure rolled into one. When he moved
> to Lum, it became easy to spend many days together goofing off, playing
> radio and eating Schwan's Ice cream bars. We would go to Radio club
> meetings, contest, work on antennas, go on dx'peditions and more. During
> our many trips out to dinner, Hank and I would sit and talk about radio
> while our wives would roll their eyes and talk about what ever it is
> that wives talk about. He was never bored and always had some sort of
> project to work on. Even if we really didn't accomplish much at all
> during a visit, just being together, playing radio and doing nothing in
> particular, truly were some of the best times of my life.
>
> Hank selflessly gave a lot of his time to various amateur radio groups
> and was always a welcome guest at club meetings and gatherings. He made
> many friends all over the country and the world, and looked forward to
> going to Dayton every year to see many of them face to face. You could
> always call him up and ask him for help with something and he'd drop
> what he was doing to give you a hand no matter what it was. If you
> needed help with a computer or anything related to amateur radio, he had
> the answer or could help you find out what you wanted to know. No matter
> how simple your question was, he never treated like you were stupid even
> if you probably should have known the answer.
>
> Hank loved to laugh and there were many times when we would end up
> laughing so hard, tears would come to our eyes and our sides would still
> hurt the next day. I'm sure a couple of you guys remember the 'sending
> of the sweepstakes exchange challenge' between Hank and Marty (K8MV). I
> can't think of any other time in my life when I laughed so hard AND
> wished I was wearing a gas mask. There is a reason one of Hank's
> nicknames was 'the divine wind'.
>
> Hank and I were constantly joking around. It was common to give each
> other a hard time if one of us messed something up. I knew exactly what
> he meant when he would grunt the words "Uh huh". Sometimes he would just
> let out a big sigh, look at me, push up his glasses with his middle
> finger and grin. If I made a comment about his age he would say "Keep it
> up and you won't make it to be this old". Sometimes people would ask us
> if we were father and son. Hank would look at me, shake his head and say
> "If he were my son he wouldn't have lived this long". If you made the
> 'mistake' of asking him "How are you?" he would quickly respond and say,
> "Great, fine, wonderful, superb, stupendous, fantastic. If I was any
> better I'd be twins." Many people would laugh, some would looked
> confused and overwhelmed, and others just didn't quite know what to say.
> No matter how people reacted, Hank didn't mind, he just loved to
> interact with the people he'd come across everyday on his way through life.
>
> I'm sure Hank would want me to share a favorite saying of his his, which
> he truly believed.
>
> “Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of
> arriving safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in
> sideways, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming ‘Wow
> – what a ride!’”
>
> Henry my friend, I'll see you again someday. I look forward to sitting
> around, having a beer and playing radio with you, Buck, and our other
> friends that make it there before I do. I know it may sound cliche' but
> I couldn't have asked for a better friend and mentor. I miss you
> terribly and I was very fortunate to have you in my life. When you
> passed you left a hole in many of our hearts that won't easily be
> filled. 73 OM, good luck in the contest and good dx.
>
> Ian - K8MM
>
> p.s. I want to thank everyone that sent me email and wished me well as I
> deal with this tremendous loss. Many of you that have been through this
> before understand the ups and downs one goes through. The pain doesn't
> lessen but intervals of time between moments of tears becomes longer
> everyday.
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