Farewell, Bruce ... and thanks
A lot of thoughts went through my mind this week with the passing of Bruce Bischoff, a friend to me and many, many others.
One of them was that this website as it exists today wouldn't be here without him.
Bruce and I were different in a lot of ways, most of them significant. He was the managing editor for the Ogemaw County Herald, the Arenac County Independent and their sister papers for the first three years of my employment there. Production days, which at the time often lasted til 2 or 3 a.m. with Bruce, myself, Dennis Mansfield and Deanna Surbrook, were often a matter of survival more than anything else. Working with Bruce, though, when you had those kinds of differences it often was fun. You find out what people are like after a 16-hour workday in the wee hours of the morning.
A lot of people knew Bruce only through his writing. He was an excellent writer and was most pleased with his columns when they elicited an avalanche of reader response. It wasn't that he would try to write things only to get a reaction; there aren't many people as true to his convictions as Bruce. But when his convictions got people talking and thinking, I think it gave him his greatest satisfaction during his time there as managing editor. Unfortunately, his duties crowded out his ability to do as much of the outdoors writing that was his true love. He enjoyed the editorials (and had a wall filled with plaques awarding him for their quality) and they reflected his opinions authentically, but there was so much more to him that didn't make itself evident if you didn't know the man. His outdoors columns, now, were another matter. That was where he could apply his talent to his passion, and they live and breathe a life of their own.
He was good at the editing gig -- improving others' writing. He could be ruthless, but I know it made me a better writer. It wasn't quite on a whim that he hired me as the sports editor in 2000, but it seemed like it to me. He knew that his sports editor, Chris Dobrowolski, was looking at other opportunities and had used some of my pictures. On their way to the Silverdome for what would be Whittemore-Prescott's crowning moment at the 2000 state championship game, Chris told Bruce that he'd taken a new position at The Alpena News. About an hour later in the Silverdome press box, Bruce, who I'd run into off an on over the previous seven or eight years, offered me the job.
Bruce gave both guidance and freedom to grow, challenged my preconceptions and made me laugh. Our backgrounds were different, our politics were different, our lifestyles were different, but he was a great guy to work for and I looked forward to the days when we were both in the office. After he left the paper and, later, I did as well (at least as an employee) we kept in touch, usually via email or IM and shared an occasional lunch. Our IM's were usually the most interesting, especially after 9/11. We rarely agreed but we shared a mutual respect for a well-thought-out argument. The once or twice I got a "good point" out of him were true victories.
And thank goodness for IM's, because in person he had a lot more sharp tools in the shed than I did. I don't think we changed each other's minds about much, but for both of us that was OK.
When I told Bruce of my website plans, he had already moved on. He encouraged me to make the leap -- and, in fact, working for him had given me the confidence to strike back out on my own. My work and repartee (the online version, anyway) had held up to Bruce's prodigious intellect. Bruce's lifelong friend Rev. Phil Tousley quoted Proverbs 27:17 at his memorial: "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." As Phil related how Bruce had done that for him, I could only nod and agree wholeheartedly, as he certainly had that affect on me.
We didn't talk as much as we should have this past year, but when we did it was to catch up on each other and mutual friends, not to debate politics or philosophy. And though his illness kept him indoors a lot more than he liked, his connection with nature never left him, so much did it define him. He was still writing outdoors columns for the Traverse City Record-Eagle until the last six weeks of his life.
One of the best things about those outdoor columns was the clear window to his soul that he gave his readers. If you haven't had the privilege, they've been archived by the Record Eagle (CLICK HERE).
I owe the man a lot. The least I can do is make sure people have a chance to read a little of what he wrote.
Enjoy.
One of them was that this website as it exists today wouldn't be here without him.
Bruce and I were different in a lot of ways, most of them significant. He was the managing editor for the Ogemaw County Herald, the Arenac County Independent and their sister papers for the first three years of my employment there. Production days, which at the time often lasted til 2 or 3 a.m. with Bruce, myself, Dennis Mansfield and Deanna Surbrook, were often a matter of survival more than anything else. Working with Bruce, though, when you had those kinds of differences it often was fun. You find out what people are like after a 16-hour workday in the wee hours of the morning.
A lot of people knew Bruce only through his writing. He was an excellent writer and was most pleased with his columns when they elicited an avalanche of reader response. It wasn't that he would try to write things only to get a reaction; there aren't many people as true to his convictions as Bruce. But when his convictions got people talking and thinking, I think it gave him his greatest satisfaction during his time there as managing editor. Unfortunately, his duties crowded out his ability to do as much of the outdoors writing that was his true love. He enjoyed the editorials (and had a wall filled with plaques awarding him for their quality) and they reflected his opinions authentically, but there was so much more to him that didn't make itself evident if you didn't know the man. His outdoors columns, now, were another matter. That was where he could apply his talent to his passion, and they live and breathe a life of their own.
He was good at the editing gig -- improving others' writing. He could be ruthless, but I know it made me a better writer. It wasn't quite on a whim that he hired me as the sports editor in 2000, but it seemed like it to me. He knew that his sports editor, Chris Dobrowolski, was looking at other opportunities and had used some of my pictures. On their way to the Silverdome for what would be Whittemore-Prescott's crowning moment at the 2000 state championship game, Chris told Bruce that he'd taken a new position at The Alpena News. About an hour later in the Silverdome press box, Bruce, who I'd run into off an on over the previous seven or eight years, offered me the job.
Bruce gave both guidance and freedom to grow, challenged my preconceptions and made me laugh. Our backgrounds were different, our politics were different, our lifestyles were different, but he was a great guy to work for and I looked forward to the days when we were both in the office. After he left the paper and, later, I did as well (at least as an employee) we kept in touch, usually via email or IM and shared an occasional lunch. Our IM's were usually the most interesting, especially after 9/11. We rarely agreed but we shared a mutual respect for a well-thought-out argument. The once or twice I got a "good point" out of him were true victories.
And thank goodness for IM's, because in person he had a lot more sharp tools in the shed than I did. I don't think we changed each other's minds about much, but for both of us that was OK.
When I told Bruce of my website plans, he had already moved on. He encouraged me to make the leap -- and, in fact, working for him had given me the confidence to strike back out on my own. My work and repartee (the online version, anyway) had held up to Bruce's prodigious intellect. Bruce's lifelong friend Rev. Phil Tousley quoted Proverbs 27:17 at his memorial: "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." As Phil related how Bruce had done that for him, I could only nod and agree wholeheartedly, as he certainly had that affect on me.
We didn't talk as much as we should have this past year, but when we did it was to catch up on each other and mutual friends, not to debate politics or philosophy. And though his illness kept him indoors a lot more than he liked, his connection with nature never left him, so much did it define him. He was still writing outdoors columns for the Traverse City Record-Eagle until the last six weeks of his life.
One of the best things about those outdoor columns was the clear window to his soul that he gave his readers. If you haven't had the privilege, they've been archived by the Record Eagle (CLICK HERE).
I owe the man a lot. The least I can do is make sure people have a chance to read a little of what he wrote.
Enjoy.
