I've been meaning to get a note off to this site to let you know how sorry Corinne Ricciardi and I were to hear of Dave's death. He was a good friend for a lot of years, and it always made us feel great that he and Becky met at the Ricciardi Gallery. Both were always supportive of the gallery and the cafe, and I always looked forward to seeing them, together or individually.
I was able to break free from time to time to get our for kayak trips with them, often from the John Day River boat launch, and on one memorable trip over to Long Island on Willapa Bay. Somewhere, there is an embarrassing photo of me, Becky, and Dave, with me still wearing my kayak skirt and looking awfully silly. I seem to remember some comparison to a babushka.... Dave, especially, was always gung-ho for adventures, and Becky kept right up. After Corinne and I moved to Maine, they came out here to visit for a week or so, I think in 2000 or 2001. Ian joined in after a while, traveling I think from Colorado. It was great fun. (I'll attach a photo of Dave at the oars of my dory in Maine, with Becky just out of sight behind him—probably one of the few times he rowed instead of paddling.) Dave had slowed down some, which was maybe a good thing, and we had a very good time camping on an island we had all to ourselves not far at all from Brooklin. We contributed to the tarp mythology when we came back from the island, because Dave wanted to cook for us—we didn't have a barbecue so had to go buy a little one, and then I quickly rigged up a tarp to trees out back once it became obvious it was going to rain, and rain it did. Whenever we got back to Astoria for a visit, which didn't happen as often as I would have liked, we reconnected. And after he built his Bartender motorboat (a design I think I recommended to him for seaworthiness especially on the lower Columbia) he and Becky brought it up to the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival. Time does slip by, and it's hard to believe that I've been going to that festival for 40 years now, and always have connections from the various places I've lived in the Northwest, and now from Maine. I saw them there together a few times—most recently a couple of years ago when they were en route from Vancouver Island back to Astoria during festival weekend and called ahead to make arrangements to meet for lunch. I really appreciated that; I believe that was the last time I saw him.
Dave had a wonderful spirit of adventure. I don't think I ever saw him happier than when he was in his kayak or cooking (always good food) on a campsite. Fair winds, my friend.
Tom Jackson
Thanks for the memories Tom, although I was kind of hoping to forget those yellow shorts!