On March 1, 2007, the world became a darker place. Dana Brown; teacher, director, mentor, and lifelong friend passed away after a long battle with cancer. I could fill a volume just with my own memories and stories...and thousands more volumes with those of others he touched. I'll try not to be quite that lengthy here.
I first learned about death when I was in 2nd grade and my mother was diagnosed with cancer. Though she fought for ten years it was still too soon. When she passed it was a very personal thing - it was devastating to family and friends. So often we hear about people dying and are faced with vivid imagery of it that we find ourselves numb to it's impact and greater meaning when it isn't someone we had direct contact with. Until we encounter a death that deeply touches people so far removed from ourselves that we are forced to recognize the connection between all mankind. This is such a time.
As many of you know my teen years were chaotic. I frequently started down bad paths and because of my family situation there was often no one to let me know what lay ahead. Until I found theatre. Then there was dana. He taught us about acting, he taught us about the technical aspects, about the craft, the business, etc. But hidden inside every lesson was always a bigger lesson; one about life and about learning who we were. They were lessons of empowerment, of self-confidence, of self-worth. People who took even a single tech or theatre history class from Dana found their voices - and not just on the stage.
I still made bad choices of course, everyone does (and has to). But before I did things that would really mess me up there was always Dana. One way or another redirecting me onto a safer course. Had it not been for him I don't know if I'd be alive today. I know I could never have coped with my mothers death if it hadn't been for him, and for the relationships he helped forge on that stage.
If my story were an isolated one then Dana would be no different from so many other teachers in the world...but it isn't. Not even close. Almost without exception EVERY person who has ever come into contact with him has felt his guiding hand, and his sheltering heart. Those people went out into the world over the decades and we took at least a little Dana with us, and we tried to pass those lessons and values on. From that one little stage next to a lake in a nowhere town in Washington those ripples have spread across the world, and made it just that much more bearable for all of us. My comfort right now is that those ripples will continue even though the source is now still.
Please send your prayers or thoughts to his wife and children, who now have to face that painful, lonely hell of infinite new days without him in it. For those of us who knew him it's enough to have felt his presence in our lives, and to carry his teaching and compassion to those we meet. We know the show must go on, and not just on the stage.
I love you Dana; farewell.
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Link to one of hundreds or thousands of stories appearing about Dana in our region over the last few months.
Tribute from our local paper.
I first learned about death when I was in 2nd grade and my mother was diagnosed with cancer. Though she fought for ten years it was still too soon. When she passed it was a very personal thing - it was devastating to family and friends. So often we hear about people dying and are faced with vivid imagery of it that we find ourselves numb to it's impact and greater meaning when it isn't someone we had direct contact with. Until we encounter a death that deeply touches people so far removed from ourselves that we are forced to recognize the connection between all mankind. This is such a time.
As many of you know my teen years were chaotic. I frequently started down bad paths and because of my family situation there was often no one to let me know what lay ahead. Until I found theatre. Then there was dana. He taught us about acting, he taught us about the technical aspects, about the craft, the business, etc. But hidden inside every lesson was always a bigger lesson; one about life and about learning who we were. They were lessons of empowerment, of self-confidence, of self-worth. People who took even a single tech or theatre history class from Dana found their voices - and not just on the stage.
I still made bad choices of course, everyone does (and has to). But before I did things that would really mess me up there was always Dana. One way or another redirecting me onto a safer course. Had it not been for him I don't know if I'd be alive today. I know I could never have coped with my mothers death if it hadn't been for him, and for the relationships he helped forge on that stage.
If my story were an isolated one then Dana would be no different from so many other teachers in the world...but it isn't. Not even close. Almost without exception EVERY person who has ever come into contact with him has felt his guiding hand, and his sheltering heart. Those people went out into the world over the decades and we took at least a little Dana with us, and we tried to pass those lessons and values on. From that one little stage next to a lake in a nowhere town in Washington those ripples have spread across the world, and made it just that much more bearable for all of us. My comfort right now is that those ripples will continue even though the source is now still.
Please send your prayers or thoughts to his wife and children, who now have to face that painful, lonely hell of infinite new days without him in it. For those of us who knew him it's enough to have felt his presence in our lives, and to carry his teaching and compassion to those we meet. We know the show must go on, and not just on the stage.
I love you Dana; farewell.
--------------
Link to one of hundreds or thousands of stories appearing about Dana in our region over the last few months.
Tribute from our local paper.
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