Marshall RIP

[mtbturtle]

I'm sad to inform our members that we have lost a long time member and moderator, Marshall. His son contacted me this morning that Marshall died May 4. He had esophagus cancer. I will miss him.

[BioWizard]

This hit me like a ton of bricks. I am incredibly saddened by this news. I did not know of his condition and had no idea he was dying. I feel like I just lost a relative.

I've always thought of Marshall as one of our most valuable colleagues. He was generous, considerate, intelligent, articulate, and passionate about science and knowledge. His print on our forums is big and unforgettable. I don't know what to say right now other than I will miss him terribly. RIP Marshall.

[vivian maxine]

Oh, my! We have lost a treasure. I learned much from him. He could be so clear and patient with his well-informed answers. We will miss him.

[SciameriKen]

Rest in piece Marshall. Always well written and incredible contributions from Marshall. I'm sad to hear the news

[ronjanec]

That's really terrible! His posts were always so well written and very professional. Rest in peace Marshall.

[Lomax]

A real loss to the forum. His intellect and warmth will be remembered.

[TheVat]

This hit me like a ton of bricks. I am incredibly saddened by this news. I did not know of his condition and had no idea he was dying. I feel like I just lost a relative.

I've always thought of Marshall as one of our most valuable colleagues. He was generous, considerate, intelligent, articulate, and passionate about science and knowledge. His print on our forums is big and unforgettable. I don't know what to say right now other than I will miss him terribly. RIP Marshall.

The above speaks for me, too. My god that is sad and a shock - he never complained of his health. I was just asking if he'd weigh in at an astronomy thread a couple days ago. In addition to the qualities Bio mentioned, I want to say I valued his knowledge of classical music and his love of wordplay.

[Dave_Oblad]

How unfortunate and surprising.

He really kept me on my toes and helped guide me in understanding our Universe. He will be sorely missed. Rest in Peace Marshall. This Site will be a darker place without your presence.

Highest Regards,
Dave :^(

[Positor]

Very sad and surprised to hear of Marshall's death. He was always most encouraging about my poetry, and made useful comments on it. His knowledge of astronomy and cosmology, and the lucidity of his posts, were impressive.

[zetreque]

:(

Back to star dust. May he continuing on his wonderful journey in the cosmos...

[wolfhnd]

Generous and helpful man that will be missed.

[Faradave]

You were a bright star, even among the rest,
enlightening others with your wisdom, no less.
Farewell Marshall. You gave us your best.

[BurtJordaan]

Just now seen this. So sad :( R.I.P. Marshall

I have worked with him om cosmological modeling and will severely miss his inputs.

[dandelion]

:((
A wonderful, legendary person. My deepest condolences to his family. RIP Marshall.

[doogles]

Marshall’s passing came as a slight shock to me. Obviously his cancer would have been fairly long-standing but he never implied in any way in his posts that he had any problems of any kind. He was positive and apparently enthusiastic about everything he said. He was always constructive and apparently very knowledgeable in the fields of cosmology, in the classics and in anything relating to academe.

I would love to have met him in person. I suspect that the impish image he used to represent himself was a reasonable reflection of his own character.

Although his main interests were slightly different from mine, I always used to view his posts out of interest. To my mind he was a stable rock in this forum, and as John Donne would have said, I feel that a part of this island forum has gone, with degree of loss to all of us.

[Dave_C]

My condolences to his family. He will be sorely missed.

Dave.

[TheVat]

I don't know what members wishes are regarding anonymity, so I guess there is no point in asking if the son mentioned any memorials or if an obit appeared. To me, it can honor someone to take a moment to learn who they were in the "real world," and I admit I was wishing to do so when James ("Owleye") passed, too. But I understand if that's something others may view as not relevant or even nosy in some way. He was so very welcoming to me when I joined SCF, I wish I could post that somewhere where others who knew him in real life are sharing remembrances.

[Natural ChemE]

Marshall really was a great guy. It's neat to look back at his contributions, like Dawn taking chem makeup data at 385 km, and see his zest for Astronomy. Even just a few weeks ago, he was still sharing beautiful new photos from space.

His contributions to science have made the world a more beautiful place.

[mtbturtle]

Regarding obits or memorials. His son did not mention any. He did mention that he was reading this thread and reading the comments aloud to some of the family members. If you are interested in more information his son has registered an account, tamino, that you could use to contact him.

[BioWizard]

Regarding obits or memorials. His son did not mention any. He did mention that he was reading this thread and reading the comments aloud to some of the family members. If you are interested in more information his son has registered an account, tamino, that you could use to contact him.

I'm glad to hear that. I was going to ask if it would be possible to relay some ot what's being said here about that amazing man to his family.

[weakmagneto]

I am absolutely shocked and deeply saddened to hear the news of Marshall's passing. I cannot recount how many times his kindness has uplifted me when I was sad, his wisdom has helped me to understand and be compassionate, and his knowledge has opened my eyes and contributed to my awareness. He was always so supportive and positive. I held him in such high-esteem. I can only hope that his family can find comfort in knowing how many lives his kindness, compassion, wisdom, and generosity has touched. He will be greatly missed. In his honour, I will purchase a luminary and write the name “Marshall” on it at our local “Relay for Life” Cancer fundraiser this June.

The song is ended but the melody lingers on…
–Irving Berlin

https://youtu.be/neDnpgZPPvY

[Serpent]

It must have been a comfort, at the end, to have a considerate and thoughtful son. Marshall must have lived his walking life as well as he lived his internet life. The world will be a poorer place.

[Forest_Dump]

I just read of Marshall's passing on. Very sad. Marshall has been a valuable member of this forum for as long as I can remember and always worth reading and thinking about. As a moderator he was always level-headed and able to bring some calm and sober reflection to the most heated debates. He set a very high standard and lived up to it in his own posts as well as when he contributed to other's debates. I certainly can't say I always agreed with Marshall on some of the more philosophical points we sparred on but his contributions definitely improved the topic and made me and everyone else think more clearly and deeply about whatever topic we were involved in. I can't imagine his shoes being filled and he will be missed. A huge loss.

[edy420]

Very sad news.

Every time I think of outter space, I think of Marshall and the questions I could ask him.

Rest in peace

[weakmagneto]

You are greatly missed, Marshall. The flame was lit for you here in the Great White North to honour your memory!

[Paralith]

Marshall was without a doubt one of the brightest stars on this forum. Though I haven't been visiting as much (so sorry to be a month behind on this news), I still always looked forward to his posts. RIP Marshall.

[weakmagneto]

I'm back on the forums for a little while as I am on sick leave. I can honestly say that I do miss Marshall's presence and wit on the forums. Still thinking of Marshall and wishing his family peace and comfort during the holiday season.

[Eclogite]

I have participated on at least nine forums over the last decade. Marshall was clearly one of the most intelligent members I had encountered on any of those forums. What was more important to me is that he came across as a genuinely decent and caring person. I do not wish to imply that the same cannot be said of other members, but Marshall seemed to have those attributes more than any other.

Because we rarely if ever meet our on-line contacts there is a two dimensional feel to most of them. Marshall was fully three dimensional and as a consequence I've felt unable to add my own regrets at his death until now. My thanks to weak magneto for creating an opportunity for me to do so.

[vivian maxine]

You are very right, Eclogite. I barely got to know him before he was gone but I saw all you said instantly. He had that rare quality that makes the stars shine for the rest of us. Enjoy your "flight", Marshall

[BioWizard]

This thread still saddens me the same amount. I too haven't met anyone quite like Marshall in all my years online.