It’s 2 a.m. or something like that over in Paris and I just got word that Marc Orchant has died.
I can’t make it back for the funeral, Marc wouldn’t have wanted that and would have wanted to be in the front row at LeWeb conference. I can hear his voice right now, he was the kind of guy who’d make sure that he followed through on his promises.
But this news just sucked the oxygen out of me.
He was such a great guy. A real loss for the tech blogging world. Hell, just a real loss for the world.
Anyway, I’ll work with Loic Le Meur (the guy who is running the LeWeb conference, which starts Tuesday in Paris and has more than 1,700 attendees), to see if we can find some good way to honor Marc. Knowing Marc his funeral will be streamed live on the Internet. That is, afterall, the way he’d have wanted it to be.
The last time I saw Marc and Sue together was in August when Buzz Bruggeman took us out for dinner. Both were happy and in their element: having good times.
I can’t believe he’s gone. He died way too young but he did live well and, in doing so, enriched all of our lives.
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How do bloggers do a “missing man” formation? We need to figure this out.
God Bless Marc’s family and friends who are left to deal with his loss.
I think Bloggers can do a missing man by signing their comments about this and not linking to their website.
Marc was a good guy and will be missed by many.
I met Marc a few times. Great man, so knowledgeable. He will be missed – my prayers goes to his family.
I agree with your post…we should enjoy life much more.
That’s not how someone like him should make his exit from life. But for the funeral, a live feed wouldn’t just be fitting — it would take some of the edge off. Don’t let things be dour. You’re celebrating a life, after all.
Well put in your title, Robert.
Everyone, I have set up an account to help support Marc’s family. It can be found here.
Marc was a great friend, an awesome dad and an all around amazing human being. He contributed a great deal to so many lives, I hope that with his passing people will be generous and give back to help reciprocate in some small way by helping Marc to do something that he no longer can.
Oliver
I worked together with both Marc and Oliver (thanks for the updates and the setting up of the fund, Oliver) for close to a year. To say that Marc was passionate about his interests is an understatement. In the short time I knew him we became friends as if we’d known each other since high school. I talked to him just two weeks prior. I called to see how things were going. And as anyone that knows Marc, they know that any conversation with Marc is 20 minutes, minimum. He loves to talk, tell stories and provide his depth of insight. This is very sad new and has all of us hard.
(Robert, if I’m not mistaken you are 42. Marc turned 50 this past July. I know because he and I are the same age and is birthday is one day before mine)
May his soul rest in peace.
I agree with Richard Hay – this is about Marc and therefore no links to websites.
DMadison: sorry, I saw on a blog that he was 42. I removed that part from my post.
Though the circumstances are of course very different, I’m reminded of CNET’s James Kim, who died almost exactly a year ago in the Oregon wilderness trying to get help for his family (who eventually did get out safely). None of us really knows what time we have left, or necessarily how we’ll go when we do. Let’s make the time we have fun and useful.
We all will miss Marc. I have missed James Kim too. But we have to remember For Men may come and men may go but life goes on for ever…..
I hear you Robert, it sucks the wind out of my sails when i found out. Marc was always just so kind and generous with his time, ideas and thoughts. I had a great time chatting with him at DEMOfall about everything from tech to parenting and Sue’s beautiful artwork.
We’ll miss ya Marc!
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