Featured GDJMSP (head Cointalk Moderator) aka Doug, has passed

OK, I’m still mostly at a loss for words, so we’ll just create an AI image.

The bot didn’t get the face exactly right (and when I tried to use the avatar pic it made him look like Colonel Sanders. LOL. Those are supposed to be gold ducats on the ground.)

But here goes:



I only knew Doug a little bit from online. He and I obviously had crossed paths in the PCGS/Collectors Universe forums way back in the early 2000s, but the precise details of that are lost to my memory.

I joined CT back in 2007 but did not actively participate here until 2016. At that time, I posted about my old trademark “Holey Coin Vest” and hat that I wore to shows, and Doug remembered, though I do not think we ever had the privilege of meeting in person.

@Randy Abercrombie and I were going to meet Doug at his home after one of the recent FUN shows. Since he couldn’t attend, we figured we’d bring the show to him. He agreed, and went so far as to give us directions to his place, but later canceled, perhaps due to health reasons.

So we never got to meet in person, but he’s been a big influence on me. Not so much numismatically, though I respect his expertise in old World gold.

The influence he had on me was more personal. He invited me to become a moderator on this site, and I was surprised and flattered by such a vote of confidence. Though it might seem trivial, it was a real confidence booster for me, as never before in my life had I been invited to any sort of “leadership” position (except when the Good Lord made me a parent). Doug’s confidence and advice (and occasional chiding) made a better and more mature person of me.

I do and will miss his steady hand at the helm here.

And I pledge my complete support to @geekpryde as his successor in the Administrator role.

 

@geekpryde originally posted this on Coin Chat, where it did surely get more eyes. I thought it appropriate to move it to the Memoriam forum after a little while, because that’s what the Memoriam forum is for. Even if it is a really quiet place.

Dare I say almost like a graveyard (OK, sorry ‘bout that comparison.)

If @geekpryde in his role as our new leader sees fit to move it back to Coin Chat (or maybe Announcements, who am I to argue?)

I did homepage-Feature this thread and made it a sticky post at the top of the Memoriam forum, because, well, Doug deserves pride of place.

 

I think the initial post being in Coin Chat made sense, but enough time has passed that I think featuring it and simultaneously moving it to the correct forum is perfect.

Hopefully people will still be directed towards it due to it being featured on the homepage , and it will still find eyeballs and people can make replies.

I also have some fun stories to tell about Doug. I'm going to consult with @fred13 and decide on how much or little to share based on what we think Doug would have approved of.

 

Doug once told me some stories about diving 1715 treasure wrecks in Florida (I think it was?), and wanted me to keep mum about that, but since I unfortunately don’t really remember any details now, there’s not anything to tell anyway.

(Hope he won’t haunt me for letting that slip. Seems he had an adventurous life.)

I announced his passing on the World Coins forum at Collectors Universe, where some will remember him, and in the General forum on NumisForums, where there are many CoinTalk alumni.