Sad community news: long-time contributor whu606 has passed

Linc

Our friend John, who went by the handle @whu606 on this site, died earlier this month. He'd been ill for some time, which is why he's been around less this year. He's survived by his wife, Julie, who does know about this site and was kind enough to send us the news. If you see his account online, it's just her checking in.

John was a member here for over 9 years, making just shy of 3,000 posts. He has been a moderator here for as long as I can remember, and all of those posts are a model of persistent patience, helpfulness and kindness. He contributed as much to the longevity of this community as anyone, and we're extreme sad to know we can no longer expect to read more characteristic kindness from him.

The last time I spoke to John was nearly a year ago, in December. He wrote us to request that @R_J be more formally recognized for his outstanding contributions to the community, which I strongly agreed with. Sadly, I was on sabbatical at the time due to a death in my own family and never returned to Vanilla full-time to see thru that final request. But I think that sums up who he was to us here: Never the squeaky wheel, always the one quietly oiling them instead.

I've inquired whether sending flowers would be appropriate; I will followup with that in case folks would like to contribute. What you could do, in any case, is post anything kind you have to say about your interactions with John, as well as kind sentiments for his widow. It can feel like there's nothing good to say, but believe me, just saying the same thing as everyone else is more than enough. It's the volume of the sentiment, not the prose, that matters.

Cheers to John and his years of quiet, kind volunteerism. We'll never see another like him.

Linc

Tagging some inactive old timers to see who still has their notifications hooked up, with apologies for omissions from my brief skimming of the member rolls. @UnderDog @Shadowdare @hgtonight @Bleistivt @ddumont @garymardell @hbf @JasonBarnabe @x00 @Stash @peregrine @rbrahmson @vrijvlinder @River @businessdad

vrijvlinder

Oh how sad to hear. He was the voice of reason in the community. I have not been around much for a couple years. Life has taken me in other directions. But will always remember my experiences in the community and the members like whu606 in a cherished way.

Thanks to Lincoln for including me as a long timer and tagging me. My condolences to his family from the bottom of my heart.

R_J

I'm truly sorry about those news. I can't imagine how that lost might feel and I am at a loss for words. Thanks Linc, for finding such cherishing words about John. I fully agree and share your perception of John as being always kind and helpful and being a valuable contributor to any discussion he has taken part at.

K17

Had not got a lot of interactions with him but yes. He was someone kind. And few times when I struggled to understand some english talk on this community (as I'm french), he explained it in my DMs.

x00

I remember him as a mild mannered well liked member and a big Hammers (West Ham United) fan .

An ideal moderator as he was very level headed.

My condolences to his family.

Linc

I will followup with that in case folks would like to contribute

Since I said I would followup, just a brief update: Flowers were politely declined.

Trebor55

Hi Linc,

I am trying to access the WHU606 site which John administrated. It has apparently been handed over to Alerdez who is struggling. Do you have any contacts for this site or associates of John who can help?

Shadowdare

I'm late to seeing this post. I am saddened to hear about the loss of an exceptional contributor and moderator of nearly a decade in the community here. He was very kind, helpful, and knowledgeable to everyone. My sincerest condolences to John's family.