The End of A Career
Dave drew an end to his 30 plus year career last Friday. He was one of the first person I met and one of my mentors at work. He insisted on doing things correctly and not taking any shortcuts, which can be a conflicting interest with managers at times. He was always willing to answer any questions and fostered the growth and transfer of knowledge to the younger generation. He has always focused on the technical ladder, avoiding as much managerial chores as possible. He has become the SME (subject matter expert) of our technical area.
I inherited some of his stuff from his office. He had accumulated quite a bit of material during his career. It was interesting to see him dig up things from the 90’s sand 80’s, times before I was even born. His office slowly transformed from a bank of personal work and achievements to an empty room with office furnitures. He admitted that he will miss the technical person and the people who has made “his last few years bearable”. I’m glad to be able to partake in his farewell moments. It started with a hand shake on my first day and ended with one on his last. It was a bittersweet moment.