Ruby Wilson, reading the UFO*BC Quarterly, at age 102!
One of the advantages of being the editor is that I
can decide what to put into the magazine [Fall 2002]. In this case, I find
that it is my privilege to be able to say a few words about the late Ruby
Wilson.
I never had the opportunity to
meet her in person - however as one can well imagine, she was a living
legend in our ranks at UFO*BC. Ms. Wilson spent a lifetime - or perhaps
one might say two lifetimes - doing the research and questioning that I
have only recently embarked on. Indeed, in many ways she was a veritable
source of inspiration. I recall one day, when I first decided to take the
helm of the magazine, that I had a deadline to meet. That particular day I was
tired and the clock on the wall was ticking away approaching midnight and
I was ready to call it quits for the day. Unfortunately, if I did not have
the magazine ready for publishing by the next morning, its release would
have been postponed by one if not two weeks. My first thought was “Who is
going to care if this thing is a week or two late?”. I had to go to work
early the next morning, and thought that a good night’s rest would serve
me well. Then all of a sudden I pictured Ms. Wilson in her home, looking
out her window and thought, “Well, there will be one person I’ll
disappoint!”. So I stayed up all night long, and miraculously got the
magazine done on time. Sure I was tired the following day, but I was happy
in the knowledge that Ms. Wilson would have her copy of the magazine to
read.
This might sound strange to some
- after all it was just one person - but one must remember that this is,
at many times, a thankless job. As directors of UFOBC we do not make any
money from our many hours of work, in fact we end up spending our own
funds to cover mundane operational costs; we seldom get any recognition
for our toils, and exist in relative obscurity. Somehow, knowing that
there was someone out there that read our magazine and looked forward to
it, really did bring a smile to my face, and a warm rewarding feeling in
my heart.
I therefore am dedicating this
issue to a fantastic pillar of the Vancouver UFO community, a pioneer and
an explorer - not of far away lands, but of the unknown and the mysterious
- Ms. Ruby Wilson. Thank you for everything, and if you do get the chance
- come by one night - pay me a visit and let me know what splendors you
have seen on the other side!
RETURN
TO HOMEPAGE