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WritingsThis page contains poems, words and musical contributions from Dooger's family and friends.
DOOGER, ELEMENTAL ELF LIGHT BEARER Crackling Campfires FIRE dancing to the staccato of the Strum Light Dancing in your eyes, Sparking comfort and transmutation Around YOU. EARTH MAN Grounded on the peaks and in the Valley Resonating an earth VIBE that seeded a community. Solid. Connected. Rooted to the Truth of his Being
WATER SPRITE Playful Flowing Moving Splashing JOY Allowing, Letting go to the current Diving IN Navigating BEING PRESENT Bubble of Giggles. AIR SOUL Vibration of the Songs blowing in the Winds Of Change Of Beauty Sweet melodies of Ideas Whispers of a Spacious HEART Elementally ,Dooger You’ve expanded to your SOURCE Leaving many traces of the ELF of Your Being That Famous Fading Cheshire cat GRIN ISN”T. DARCY RUSSELL WALK LIKE DOOGIEIt's been 5 weeks that you've been gone I always felt like a king in just being with you chorus:
from the start to the finish you were anyone's friend so my vow to you buddy is to live the song chorus it's been six weeks now that you've been gone I'm going to do what I can to keep your place alive chorus tomorrow's eight weeks that you've been gone I know that you'd have wanted there to just be love chorus Van Redecopp Breathless
A large(2.0Mb) mp3 of Breathless is available for download if you don't see the player above.
Hey, Where've you gone today?
We'll be brave And picture your face The weather, the wind, and the waves The rivers all calling your name Chorus: To the prayerless day, that I must face You left us with your strings Chorus:
To the prayerless day that I must face Mike Hepher Letter To DougIt is one month today that we lost Doug and it isn't any easier, but reading all the great stories and seeing all the pictures has been wonderful. This is a letter from Brian and I that we read at his Celebration of Life. Dear Doug, Hello baby brother. We know you are 48, but to us you will always be our baby brother. We still remember the day mom and dad brought you home from the hospital - a tiny baby boy with lots of dark hair and a big cast on your leg. I forgave you right away for not being a girl and Brian forgave you for replacing him as the baby of the family (well maybe not right away). Wayne was 15 and a little embarrassed that his mom had another baby. Your were always such a happy kid and went through so much. You spent 2 months (over Christmas) in Vancouver children's hospital and you were only 5. Thank goodness you had Wayne to visit you and make you laugh. I still remember how sad our mom was for those two months. You were a terrific kid growing up. Lots of friends and lots of activities. You loved visiting Uncle Jack and Auntie Joyce's farm. We are sure you and Ronnie got into many a scrap together. You thought it was so funny that your soccer friends thought dad was your grandpa and you sure had to tell dad. You had to tell Brian about the bus driver warning him that if he was anything like his brother he wouldn't be riding the bus very long and this was 9 years later. You lost mom when you were only 16 - it was hard enough on the rest of us but can't imagine how terrible it was for you. Thank goodness you and dad had each other. 2The years went by and boy did you travel. You spent your 18th birthday in Germany with dad, Bob and us and then 2 years later you spent your 20th birthday in Germany with Billy and us. We got postcards for everywhere - very short notes, but you did write. Brian, Brenda and the kids saw you more often and had lots of great memories. Brenda says you are the only one that could call women pesky wenches and get away with it -- because you were such a great cook. Every few years we all got together and we have the pictures to prove it. Little kids hanging off you, climbing on your back and we know you loved it. Laurie, Mike, Steve, Tammy and Tracy thought the world of their Uncle Doug. Rita, Don and Neil became a second family to you and they loved you as you loved them. The last few years have had some very sad times for us. Dad passed away in 2001 and you were our rock. Wayne, Brian and I were kind of useless. Then in 2003 we lost Wayne and again you were the one who arranged everything. After that we all agreed that we would not do this again for 50 years. Wednesday we got the call at work that you died and we both felt and knew that hearts really could break. Wednesday we grieved for ourselves. Then we would both think of someone else that loved you and we would be lost all over again. Our family, Irene, the families of the other three that died trying to save you and then all your special friends. We love you Doug and will always miss you but Brian says we aren't coming to see you soon. Love, Glady & Brian Today
it's been a month...
that's 8-12 lunches, 4-6 movies,
at least 2-4 plates of heuvos ranch dooger on the stage,
pots of coffee,
another dozen or so phone calls
and I can't say how many beer and laughs
and conversations about the new roof
my mind tells me to get a grip...
but today again, I just don't care to...
there are no rules... just life...
and trying to grow with what life sends
Van Redecopp, June 11th, 2006 Tribute to DougI have had the honor and pleasure of being a friend of Doug’s ( Buc) for some 36 years. We met back in 1970, when we entered McKim high school grade 8 . As many of you that knew Doug will also state we became instant friends. How can you help but not like this guy. I have so many great memories of Doug. I can’t begin to count the times we traveled through the bush across Cow Creek on our way to the secret bush party site (known to everyone in Marysville). On one occasion I believe it was Bill Chambers, Doug and myself decided to see how many times we could hitchhike between Kimberley to Marysville in one day. I can’t quite remember the count (17 or 18) but I am certain it is a record that stills stands today. After we graduated in 1975, I moved away to Alberta to find work. While there, I lived on an acreage about 14 miles west of Medicine Hat, a place where Doug would drop in many times over the years. One of the first times Doug came to visit me on what we called the FARM, I received a phone call from him. He was in Lethbridge. “Hi Mac” he said “how long a drive is it to your place?” I replied about an hour and a half. Okay he said I’ll see you shortly - meet me on the highway. After an hour or so I made my way down the gravel road and parked along side the highway waiting for Doug, expecting him to show up in the old green car Loyal had driven for many years. To my surprise a big semi truck pulls over and out gets Doug. He had hitchhiked from his place to mine in the same time it would have taken him to drive by car. Doug had just taken up playing the guitar around that time and he was always willing to share any new tunes he had learned. He taught me my first guitar chords. I’m sure we played House of the Rising Sun more times than Alan Price. Doug moved on to be quite a musician; as for me I still play House of the Rising Sun and each time I play I know Doug is playing along with me. I called Doug one day in August of 1985 and told him that I was getting married. I still remember his comment (Why the hell you want to do something so foolish). I asked Doug to be my best man and he agreed, even after I told him he had to wear a suit and not a wool sweater. Loyal, Rita, Shauna and Doug traveled to Medicine Hat to attend our wedding Aug. 31 1985 and it took all of us to hold him down and get that suit on him. (Just Kidding). I have submitted a few photos to prove that yes Doug Erickson did at one time wear a suit. I can say I am a better man for having known Doug, he had a special gift, one we can all learn from -- the gift of a good heart. At Doug’s wake it was evident that this man touched a lot of peoples hearts. He was lucky to have such fine friends and we have all been blessed for the times spent with Doug. I thank those of you that put together this great tribute to Doug. God Bless You All As said in a song: Go rest high on that mountain – Son your work on earth is done! Forever remembered..... Jim MacPhail (Mac) Doug’s Eulogy18 yrs ago, my wife Debbie & I, moved from Toronto to the Mayook Valley in search of a better life style. It was there that we met our new neighbour, Doug Erickson. This lucky encounter would change my life, and I soon became one of many who considered Doug to be my best friend. Doug, or Dooger as his friends called him, shared my passion for the outdoors, and we shared many adventures together, canoeing, mountain climbing, back country skiing, a 200 mile rafting expedition down the Grand Canyon, and many laughs around the campfire. Along with good friend Don Flowers, Doug became a skilled white water canoe instructor. One of Doug's famous sayings was "there's nothing stopping us but fear and common sense". Being adventurous they lowered their canoes down the steep rocky cliffs of the Bull River Gorge below the dam during low water, and rappelled down to ride the wild Bull. They were probably the only 2 people to ever successfully paddle down this stretch of river in open canoes. They also became Saint John's ambulance 1st aid instructors. Doug was the kind of guy you'd want to have around in an emergency, and I always felt safer with him. Dooger had a real zest for life, and was known for his big toothy grin flashing through his beard. His smile was contagious. He would always make you laugh, and was just a fun guy to hang out with. Although he didn't have kids of his own, all the kids that knew him, including our daughter Kayla loved to play with "Uncle Doug" cause he knew how to relate to them, and make them laugh or scream. Dooger valued friendships more than any material possessions. He didn't care about good quality furniture, but always had good quality friends dropping in to visit. He was a genuinely caring and compassionate person, and in spite of his busy life, he always made time to help friends. If someone he knew needed help, or was experiencing any kind of grief, Doug would be there for them. That was Dooger. Every time I started building a new project or if any of his friends had a work project, Dooger would show up with his tools and many skills, one of his most valuable skills was his ability to turn work into fun. Over the years Dooger had made a vast network of good friends, he was outgoing and easygoing and was constantly making new ones. He was the glue that bound all these people together into a community, and I realize how lucky Debbie and I were when we 1st moved to this area, not knowing anyone, to become part of this community of friends. Dooger, and the Mayookranians , a name he called the residents of Mayook, were responsible for organizing the annual Mayook Mania Music Festival, that has been going on at Dooger’ s property for the past 15 yrs. Doug also organized the annual Kootenay River canoe trip. He would haul a trailer stacked high with canoes, and about 10 boat loads of friends and their kids would do the scenic paddle and river side camp out. Always safety conscious, he took the time to introduce and instruct a lot of new people to the joys of canoeing. Doug loved to play guitar and sing, and was a strong promoter of the local music scene. Music was one of the key ingredients of the glue that Dooger used to bind friends together, and most gatherings revolved around a circle of musicians and a potluck dinner. I learned a lot from Dooger. Not just the skills like white water canoeing, back country telemark skiing, or building a cedar strip sea kayak, but also many life skills. Doug never taught by preaching, in his modest and unassuming way, he taught by example. He was always positive, never dwelling on negative emotions. He was always honest and fair. Never judgmental, he would accept people for who they were and never put anyone down or talk behind their back. He stood up for what he believed in, but always tried to avoid conflicts and those that caused them. Knowing Doug has made me a better person. Since his death, several of us have said that we would aspire to be more like the person he was, and maybe this could be Dooger’s legacy. If one man can make a positive change on other peoples lives through his example, then maybe those other people could do the same through their example. This may sound idealistic, but if more people would treat each other, and the environment, with the respect that Doug did, can you imagine how much better our world would be. Doug lived a full, rich, and happy life, and would have no regrets. He told me he wasn't afraid of death, but what would really have bothered him, with the fact that 3 other wonderful people died in an attempt to rescue or recover him. Even in his will, Doug requested that he didn't want a funeral, just a musical gathering for his friends and family. We did that for him on May 21st a great celebration of his life, attended by several hundred people whose lives he had touched. He also said in his will "don't worry about me, I'm OK". Well, I'm sure you are Dooger, but the rest of us that you left behind aren't doing so well, because a part of our lives is now missing that can not be replaced. We're gonna miss you Dooger! Mike Zamara Ships Coming and GoingHello....thanks to both of you for creating this beautiful site. I just read Gordon Jollie's and Bill Chambers memories of Doug.....all of us graduated together in 1975. We were so fortunate to have had our 30 year reunion last July Fest Weekend. Doug and took some time to catch up with each others lives and danced until the band shut it down at our Saturday night party. He was wearing his crazy outfit that looked like tux! In his presence he said some of the sweetest things to me about his memories of me in high school. I was quite introverted back then, with very little self esteem, but Doug let me know that he noticed me and felt I had so much to offer the world and that he "loved my smile". Thank you Doug. Then my husband Peter and I were so fortunate to attend a party at Mayook last labour day weekend. We were meeting up with my brother Dexter and his wife Joanne to travel to Waterton together to spread our father's ashes and had a stop over at Mayook before we made this journey. With Doug having lost his own parents he spoke with compassion knowing that this was to be a bittersweet journey for us. Back to the party....Peter, Doug and I were the last to go to bed that evening....more like early morning! It was a magical night, clear star filled sky with this beautiful warm wind blowing through. It was a night you never wanted to end....we did our best to do so but with Doug heading out for his annual Labour Day canoe trip and us carrying on with our own plans we knew some sleep was in order. I will hold the memories of that evening in my heart forever. An invite to Mayook Mania for this summers has been spoken of so many times over the months as Peter was arranging for some of his band members to also attend. It was about the only solid plans we had made for our holidays. I am so glad that I made the trek from Kamloops to Mayook last Sunday to be part of the Celebration. Knowing Doug was quite a shy kind of person himself in High School it was nothing short of amazing to see the incredible gathering of folk. As the rest of you, I share the opinion that we have all been so blessed by his loving spirit. He was loved....but more so, he was loving....what more are we on this earth for?Nothing!!! May we all take his "teachings" to heart and strive to be happy...and loving...and kind....and all that he was! Yes, putting some of my thoughts in writing has helped...again thanks for creating this opportunity. Bright Blessings, Deb (Zevick) McArthur I know that Doug spent some time on a ship....can't remember if he was working on it or what....still, this poem is very fitting. Ships Coming and GoingI am standing upon the seashore a ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze and starts for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength, and I stand and watch her until - at length - she hangs like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky come down to mingle with each other. Then someone at my side says, "There! She is gone!" Gone where? Gone from my sight - that is all. She is just as large in mast and hull and spare as she was when she left my side and is just as able to bear her load of living freight to the place of destination . Her diminished size is in me, not in her; and just at that moment when someone at my side says "There! She is gone!" there are eyes watching and other voices ready to take up the glad shout, "There she comes!" And that is dying. The Midradsh Tune for DoogerThis song was written shortly after I heard the news of Doug's tragic death. After Dooger heard it, I figure he would have said to me "Oh Jeffrey... you're making me very depressed!".
I will miss you very much Dooger. Jeff Burrows An mp3 (0.9MB) of Tune for Dooger is available for download if you don't see the player above. Page 1 and Page 2 of the music are also available online. Doug's SongCatherine writes...I used to live in Mayook just up the road past the lake. And, so we all used to get together at Doug's and do music. Doug and Larry (MacKenzie) and Van and I, in particular, used to play together and do coffeehouses. So many memories of which I plan to submit at a later date. I just wanted to forward to you a song that Doug wrote (and which we played at a coffeehouse at least 9 years ago (as I've been here in Santa Cruz now for almost 8 years). (Time is going by waaaay too fast!) Anyway, the chorus is soooooooo Doug P.S. He never did name the song, but I think just calling it "Doug's Song" is appropriate. NAMASTE. There's some people ya think they got it all, Makes no difference if they rise or fall, They're so happy just to play the game, Instead of watching from the pouring rain. G D C (x2)There were times when I did not know, Why would this sadness just come and go, I was lookin for some peace of mind, Deep within me, it was there all the time. Chorus:G D C (x2)Keep a happy face wherever you go, share a smile with someone you know, It's just not worth it to carry a frown, A big belly laugh will light up this town.
Everybody, come and join right in, Sing it loud, know it ain't no sin, Telling friends 'bout the times you had, Filled with pleasure, ya, none were bad. G D C (x2)Chorus:Keep a happy face wherever you go, share a smile with someone you know, It's just not worth it to carry a frown, A big belly laugh will light up this town. I'll let you in on a little secretI don't live in Cranbrook, or anywhere at all in the East Kootenays. In fact, since I first arrived in town 8 years ago, I've been passing through the area. At least, that's what I told myself. Cranbrook was merely a stopover on the way to somewhere else (though that somewhere else had yet to be determined). Even after purchasing a house, giving birth, raising a family, finding friends, joining in various community events, etc., I never felt that I was home. I'm a big city girl with big city tastes. Many of the less urban ways of the area frustrated me. Then, tragedy struck. The deaths at the Sullivan Mine in Kimberley were devastating to all who live in (or are merely passing through) the area. In a community as close knit as this, there are few who were not touched by the fatalities, myself included. And the loss of these lives has shaken me, have shaken us, to the core. I was driving with a friend into Cranbrook as we heard the names of the victims. We listened in silence as the known details were revealed. We listened to an announcement about the funeral of a logger who had been killed on the job earlier in the week. We both shook our heads at the sorrow that the families must be feeling. My friend, who is also “passing through town”, noted how so many people in the area are in high-risk industry jobs. It was then that it hit me. After 8 years of telling myself that I'm just passing through this town, it is my home. I love it here. I love the rednecks with their big trucks. I love the hockey players, their supporters, the gardeners, the outdoorsmen, the hikers and runners, the miners, the loggers, the restaurateurs, the teachers and hospital workers. I love that everyone knows everyone else. I love that one of the dearest friends I have is 14 years younger than me and comes over for coffee just because. I love that my kids are a part of this community. I love that people I've never met feel comfortable coming up to me and telling me they’ve seen me in a play or read something I’ve written. I love that I can’t go for a walk with a handsome man without the phone ringing as soon as I walk in my door asking me who he was. I love that I can't leave my house at all without seeing someone I know. I love that while I am sitting in my living room typing this, someone drove by my house and honked to say "hi". I love that the next vehicle was a convertible with a large dog in the back seat wearing sunglasses. I’m not sure why it took me a full eight years to figure out that, while I’ve been waiting to move on so that I could find my home, I was already there. However, sometimes it takes the loss of someone within a community to understand just how important, how strong, and how vital that community is. This is an amazing place. There is magic in this area – deep magic. Old magic. There is history and beauty that cannot be rivalled, so long as one is willing to look for it. I’m willing. And in looking, I’ve found home. The loss of the four people in the Sullivan Mine cannot properly be expressed. Kim Weitzel, Shawn Currier, Bob Newcombe, and Doug Erickson will be deeply missed by their family and the people who loved them. The most profound expression of that loss was a poem written for Doug by a close friend. With his permission, I share it here, along with my deepest sympathies to all those affected. Tanya Laing Moore DoogerOpen Smile Open Life Open Arms Open Home Open Case Open Eyes Open Fly Open Mug Open Sky Open Valley Open Earth Open Stage Missing Man Bernie Plant May 2006 My Thoughtsby Christa Knight
Just sitting by the computer, looking through photos, these thoughts came to mind...
How quickly our lives change Only an instant From joy to sorrow Hurt, deep inside Feeling the loss
Tragedy has struck Community in shock Friends gather for comfort Log house upon the hill
Holding one another Tears begin to fall Puzzling set of events Trying to understand
Remembered for his Smiling face Gentle, loving spirit Music within his heart
Blessed are those that knew him He touched so many lives Singing with the angels now Continuing to guide us
A Song for Doug (The Man with the Endless Smile)Verse 1You helped to bridge the biggest chasms, by showing how good people can be, You brought the music into so many lives, helped lift their spirits and set them free. You shared your passion for the water, its flowing ebbs and tides, always with a smile, and took us along for the ride. ChorusThe tears they will subside, though it will take a while, but we’ll remember the water, and the man with the endless smile. Verse 2Your smile brought the sun on cloudy days, your clear sense of perspective cut through the haze. Gone but not forgotten, your life is a monument, to what should be important, and how time should be spent. ChorusThe tears they will subside, though it will take a while, but we’ll remember the powder, and the man with the endless smile. Verse 3I wish I’d known you sooner, but you gave me a lifetime of memories. When I’m out in the woods, or on the water, I’ll hear your song in the breeze. ChorusThe tears they will subside, though it will take a while, But we’ll remember the forests, and the man with the endless smile. Verse 4You touched a lot of people, how many you’ll never know. The lessons you provided, will help them to grow. ChorusThe tears they will subside, though it will take a while, But we’ll remember the laughter, and the man with the endless smile. Verse 5If the face is a mirror to the soul, the bodyjust a shell, Your eyes and smile showed the world, and we’ll remember, that you lived life so well. ChorusThe tears they will subside, though it will take a while, but we’ll remember the rainbow, and the man with the endless smile. Verse 6So fear not for your (all you?) friends, though the pain will linger on, your spirit enriched our lives, gives us strength to carry on ChorusThe tears they will subside, though it will take a while, but we’ll remember the music, and the man with the endless smile. Verse 7 (Final Verse)So when the tears subside and it will take a while, always remember Dooger, the man with the endless smile. Jon Bisset, May 18, 2006 The lion's teeth today turned white, The big star shivered hot and bright For a second there was wind; This shaky calmness is for you.
You have helped build forests, There are trees that bear your name, And the maniacs are bearing up, Down by the quiet stage.
Your river's risen higher, Trees are going in the ground, But the coffeehouse grows silent, And our boats are turned around.
Walk or hitchhike, half a beard, Cabins, skies, and queens and kings, Fabled oars and faded chords, And just a chance to sing.
Sing on down, feather stroke Blue waters have turned brown I know if you were I, hey man, I know you'd sing on down.
And rushing on, and rushing down, and rushing through my mind Are the simple joys a giant smile Has gone and left behind.
written by matt thompson May 17, 2006 |
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