Forgive me, I used to frequent FAOL a few years ago. Al was one of my favorite authors, and he gave me a lot of good advice on various flies, and on rod building. I noticed that his column ends with just a few articles late in 2004 – is Al still with us?
nuttyonepdx
Sorry to be the one to tell you but Al passed away and is watching over us.
Check some of the older post and you can get the whole story…
Harold
That’s sad. I tried searching the archives, but I didn’t find anything leading me one way or the other. I kind of had a feeling, because Al didn’t seem like the type to just stop his column without warning. He’ll be missed, that’s for sure.
You are absolutely right, we should have some which explains Al’s passing in his section.
I promise to work on it. In the meantime,
here is my farewell to him (his obituary is there too): [url=http://www.flyanglersonline.com/ldy/ldy050205.html:5e63e]http://www.flyanglersonline.com/ldy/ldy050205.html[/url:5e63e]
LadyFisher, Publisher of
FAOL
Deanna, last year was kind of a crazy one for me with my son’s injuries and I had missed that article on Al. I’m really glad you posted the link so I could see it.
What a wonderful man he was. So many talents and so great a heart. I hope the legacy he has left behind here at FAOL will endure forever!
All I can say is God Bless to all…This thread has overwhelmed me…Thanks again for the look back Deanna…still just does not seem right this world, At times…Really wish I’d known him…
Al Campbell was a amazing person, friend to all that he met, a mentor to those who he never met! His patience and sharing of knowledge, his encouragement of trying something complicated (by making it easy to understand), was a gift to us all. We are the legacy of Al Campbell, and I know I will carry on trying to help others as Al helped me. Even we all were sadden by Al’s death amost a year ago, he lives on in all of us who knew and loved him, and his love still lives inside me.
~Parnelli
I continue to promote, tie and share Al’s crappie candy fly. It is a miniature clouser to me.
Once I sent him a couple of my wifes large chocolate chip cookies for Christmas after chatting with him in the chat room here on FAOL.
Bob Scheidt
Al loved hearing from everyone! He really enjoyed responding to the email and questions. Something most don’t know, Al attended divinity school and dropped out because he couldn’t find a way to accept the differences in dogma of the organized church with the Bible. He really lived his faith.
He served in the Air Force, and retired from the military - during the Viet Nam war he was hitch-hiking in uniform back home for leave, and was attacked by a couple of anti-war guys and left for dead in a ditch in Montana. He survived of course, but I’ve wondered if that beating had any bearing on the brain tumor which took his life.
Many stories about Al are still untold.
LadyFisher, Publisher of
FAOL
Three days in South Dakota, riding up and down the hillsides with Al Campbell, in his beatup Red Wagon (with Buford in the backseat). The man was just a fountain of knowledge, and I was in total awe of everything he said. I felt at ease with Al, and just tried to soak it all in
I learned from Al,that he only drank Doctor Pepper, and had beaten the curse of the Demon Rum. While he was in the Air Force, he would work double shifts, to acumulate timeoff to, hire out for Guiding Fly Anglers, or those interested in hunting Elk.
He overcame many hard times in his life, and kept his humor and good nature.
LadyFisher, I don’t think he was beaten up by Hippies. Hippies would never do that, I spent a month in Hippy Central USA (Haight & Asbury, San Francisco), on my way to Vietnam. There were others on the fringes that were Anti War Fanatics, but they were not Hippies! Hippies would never use force, they would give you a flower, and say “Peace!”
…Parnelli “Short Hair Hippy”
U.S. Army 1968-1995
[This message has been edited by Steven H. McGarthwaite (edited 09 January 2006).]
I didn’t say ‘hippies’ I said:
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size=“1” face=“Verdana”>quote:</font><HR>
and was attacked by a couple of anti-war guys and left for dead in a ditch in Montana.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
What I didn’t say, but I’ll add it now, they also took the opportunity to pee on him. His unform was soaked with urine.
LadyFisher, Publisher of
FAOL
I never go to meet Al but he chipped in to help me when I needed it. I know that some day I will meet him in paradise. The antics of the Anti-War types backfired on them. My generation saw our family members beaten and spat upon after returning home. That filled most of us with a great resolve to to defend our nation against “All enemies foreign and domestic”. God Bless Al Campbell!
Eric “nighthawk”
American veteran and proud of it!
I want to post something on this, but, I just can’t! I never got a chance to meet Al and that hurts as much as losing him. For some reason it still feels like I lost him just yesterday and it puts a knot inside me and makes my eyes tear up just to be reminded again that he is gone. I just cannot explain why I feel this way about someone I never met and yet I feel like he lived next door and we were always together! I don’t know what else to say…
Warren
Al was a wonderful guy! Period. He took a few things that I said the wrong way…but for one instant…then when we both talked we had a good grin over it!
Al was a wonderful guy, period. I miss him but not nearly as much as the fortunate folk who actually met him, I’m sure!
God Bless you Al. You made a lot of people happy in your lifetime.
Jeremy.
LadyFisher:
I apologize, what I thought I read, and what you wrote, were completely different.
Please take into account that I am dyslexic, so my lack of hearing in the mid-range (Artillery)causing me to misunderstand what is said, complements my sometimes mis-reading what is written.
~Parnelli