Tim Carpenter, co-founder of Progressive Democrats of America, passed away last night.

[Journeyman]

23. Very sorry to hear this. I met Tim in the mid-'70s, when he was a teen. . .

He'd been involved in some tussle over campaign signs or the like, and the guy who introduced us referred to him as "the fighting young Democrat" of the neighborhood. We shared a laugh about it, but I perceived he was someone special, someone who wasn't going to rest easy in this world.

We met again a few years later. We shared a friend. We never grew close ourselves, but rather kept in contact through our close association with our mutual friend. And when this friend left California, and travelled to Oregon to attend school, Tim and I saw one another each summer, when our friend returned from university to visit. We took to jokingly calling our friend "Dill," in laughing homage to the youngster who returned to visit Scout and Jem each summer.

It was a tremendously painful time for us both when our friend passed away, and Tim and I stayed in touch for a short time until he moved East, away from California. I wrote him a few times, usually when I ran across an article about his latest doings, but we never saw each other again.

I will miss him. I wish I'd known him better as an adult. But I'll cherish the memories of our youth, mine somewhat misspent, his richly rewarding.