Douglas Lloyd Erickson (Dooger) Memorial

May 26, 2006... My oldest & dearest friend...

Hi Folks,

I’ve known Doug since we were in grade 2 at Marysville Type Elementary School we lived across the street from each other for many years. We spent a lot of time together over the years and for the most part we always had a great time.

There is one time I remember when Doug & I were around 17 or 18 & we were hanging out at his house. What I didn’t realize about myself at that time as I was bossy & very whiney. Unknown to me Doug was recording us that day with a cassette recorder & after a while, without saying a word, he got up and rewound the tape and played it back. I’ll tell you I was some shocked to hear this high pitched, whiney voice & realizing it was my own voice saying things like “no not that one”, “no I don’t wanna do that” & it went on & on. My eyes were opened that day and all the while Doug never said anything. That man was wise beyond his years & today I’m thankful for the lesson he taught me and I have never forgotten it.

I moved to the west coast in 1980 and have only seen Doug a handful of times over the last 26 years and I have always been delighted whenever I saw him, it was always like I had never been away.

I had the pleasure of attending “Mayook Mania” about 11 or so years ago & had the privilege of playing on the stage with my 2 kids and also accompanying some of the other people there playing my stand up bass. It was the only “Mania” I ever got to & I’m so glad to have that experience as a part of my memories.

There was a time maybe 4 or so years ago that I entered a contest on CBC radio where you had to make up a 90 second song and call in & sing it acapella. I never won the prize but to by astonishment I was talking to Doug a few months later & he told me he had heard me on the radio. I have always felt connected to Doug and this was one of those little things that has kept that connection alive in my heart.

I had the pleasure of playing a few tunes with Doug & one of his friends (I don’t remember his name), Irene was there too, in December of 2001 which was the last time I saw him. I was going through a bit of a hard time & had come to Kimberley to visit my Dad & lick my wounds. I felt so relaxed, welcomed & at home out at Doug & Irene’s place that night it was very hard to leave. There was an incredible serenity in that house.

In the last 26 years I don’t think there was ever more than a week went by that I didn’t think about Doug & maybe wonder what he was up to or when his next summer party would be or some such thought. He will be in my thoughts & in my heart for many, many years to come.

I wish I could have made it  to Mayook last Sunday but what I did do was pick up my guitar many times that day & play a tune or two & imagine I was there with all of you, it helped a lot.

I want to thank you folks for creating this web site, it has given me far more than I could have had with out it. It has been great therapy writing this as there is no one near by that knew Doug to share this stuff with.

I’ll miss you Doug & love you forever.

Gord Jolie, Victoria B.C.

May 23, 2006

Doug and I were friends all our lives. I never knew him as Dooger, somewhere along the way Doug became Bucket or Buck for short. I was either Charlie or Bers. I think Doug was the only one that called me bers on a regular basis. I have many stories to tell but I don't want to use up all the space on this site. I will share this one:

We were about ten or twelve and Doug's parents had invited me to go camping with them at Fairmont Hot Springs. I think the travel trailer they had at the time was about fifteen feet long, and Doug and I had to share the top bunk. It was blistering hot and we spent the whole day in the pool and got burned to a crisp. It didn't matter how much cream Doug's mom put on us we were in agony and we had to sleep on that tiny bunk.

When we were young Doug had a Honda 50 mini bike. Back then it was all bush behind their house in Marysville, so there were lots of trails to ride on. On this day Loyal was taking us to Premier Lake. We unloaded the bike and went for a ride to Quartz Lake. On the way back Doug decided to we could make it through this big mudpuddle. Of course we dumped the bike in the middle. I managed to get off and was trying to brush the mud off my new pants and forgot that Doug was lying in the puddle with the bike on top of him. He had a memory like an elephant because years later whenever I saw him he would remind me that I left him lying in that puddle.