In Memoriam of Bobby Blanchard (DRT Member)
On Saturday March 17, 2007 Bobby Blanchard died in a plane crash in Oklahoma. (See http://kten.com/Global/story.asp?S=6242588 for detail).
Bobby was a much loved member of the DRT and truly represented the spirit of the group. He was hard working, intelligent, entrepreneurial and generous of his time and resources. The DRT has lost someone very special and we will all miss him.
Most of us last saw Bobby on Thursday night at Javier’s. He had joined us that evening for drinks and dinner. His birthday was on that Friday and that night he had come to celebrate with all of us. As usual Bobby was happy and outgoing and funny. That night, Jim LaFontaine had sung happy birthday to Bobby in Italian. For all of us, it was a treat and Bobby was the most excited about it! (For rarely does Jim sing in public!).
It is hard to understand why the best and brightest of us are taken away so soon. Bobby, while not active in the past few months, was always willing to lend help, support and advice to any DRT member. If anything is to be learned from Bobby’s passing, it is that life is too short and that we each must savor its beauty and embrace our friends and family as if every day was the last. Bobby always lived his life to the fullest and set an example on how each of us can enjoy all that life has to offer!
