Jackson Hole 8
Feb. 9, 2025,
Hi Everyone,
Tonight I went to the closing banquet which had great food and beverages and is always very informal. I was sitting at a table with a fellow who I had met before and another fellow who lives in San Diego, owns several motorcycles and sailboats so we had a lot in common to talk about. Dr. Ralph Hopkins ran the conference for many years until his passing. Dr. Fernando Kim took over the organization of the meeting afterwards and has been doing a fantastic job of continuing the meeting with excellent invited speakers.
Dr. Kim came over to me to thank me for coming to the meeting as he recognized me from previous meetings. I have been coming to the meeting on and off for 30 years. I told him a story about Dr. Hopkins which I had wanted to tell for many years but was afraid to tell as I did not know how it would be taken. He told me that I must tell the story to everyone.
As the meeting came to a close, he then thanked me in front of everyone for being a loyal supporter of the meeting for so many years. He then handed me the mike and asked me to recount the story. 12 years ago in Feb. 2013 I came to the meeting with several of my children. As the morning session closed, Ralph came up to me, addressed me by my first name, Brian, and asked me how I liked the meeting. I was surprised that he would know me by my first name as I am not really that important in the urological community . I told him that I really enjoyed the meeting and that I was here again with my family. He asked me about the skiing perhaps knowing that both myself and my children are ardent skiers. He then asked me if I would be returning next year. I replied, ‘of course I will be here’ and we shook hands promising to see each other next year. 4 weeks later I had 3 heart attacks and a quadruple bypass. Several months later he passed away from pulmonary complications. I have thought about that moment in time many times and certainly every time that I come to Jackson Hole. I often wonder if he is looking down on me wondering why I am not up there with him as we had definitely promised to see each other the following year. I recovered well from the bypass, skiing 35 days a year and playing 80 games of hockey a year. I have done 15 triathlons since my bypass. One day, in the not so distant future we will have that reunion.
Following the banquet, I was invited to a private party with the conference organizers. I was really flattered to have been included among the speakers. The post banquet party was great with drinks, and dancing to Brazilian and 1970s rock music.
See you all next year.
Love.
Brian
gobriantravel 