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Remembrance by Rulison Evans of Gannett-Fleming Dear Karen, I regret not being available to personally convey these thoughts, but I offer them to you and your family along with my deepest sympathy. If you find it appropriate, please feel free to allow someone else to read these words on my behalf. Otherwise, just tuck this away for a few years, and then perhaps offer it to your sons to remind them of their dad. My dad passed away when I was young. Later, I worked during summer breaks at the water utility of which my dad had been president. I will always cherish the stories told to me by his co-workers. They provided a special, yet different perspective of him than I learned from my immediate family. If I could, I would say something like this at John's funeral... =================================================== This is a sad time, but also a time to celebrate John's life and accomplishments. He was an incredibly intelligent and unique individual, who had a positive influence on all those fortunate enough to know him. I was blessed to be able to count myself among his friends and business associates. From humble beginnings in rural Ohio, to college days at MIT and the University of New Hampshire, to life in the "big city" of Pittsburgh, John touched the lives of countless people, both directly and indirectly. He spoke to me often, with love and great pride, about his lovely wife Karen and his sons, Robert and Kenneth. Through his chosen profession, he helped tens of thousands of people who never even knew him. And he did so with diligence, efficiency and the highest of ethical standards. On the lighter side, yet in total seriousness, he often said that "our job, as civil engineers, is to protect as many lives as possible... with the money that is available!" John had what my wife would call "the gift of gab!" He could talk intelligently with anyone about nearly any subject. Not just engineering and science, but also arts and architecture, aviation, music, politics, religion, history, mythology... you name it, and John had at least a sufficient knowledge of it to carry on a lengthy, in-depth discussion. I was fortunate enough to have had many such discussions with John over a good meal and/or a fine single-malt Scotch. I got to know John starting in late 1997. He called me one day to tell me that his employer had selected my company to design some tanks to replace the reservoir at Highland Park. Not long after we began working together, it became apparent that the City did not want to lose the open water feature in the park. With input from his co-workers who had been studying membranes on a small scale, John came to my office one day and asked me, "Have you ever heard about these 'membrane filters'?" I had, but at that time I could not have imagined using membranes to treat large quantities of drinking water. John had an uncanny way of 'thinking outside the box,' and he taught me to do the same, a lesson for which I will always be grateful. Today there is a brand new facility in Highland Park that intentionally looks like it has been there for 100 years, which treats 20 million gallons of drinking water every day for the City of Pittsburgh. And the open water feature of the park remains for all to enjoy. I thank John for allowing me to assist him with a career-defining project for each of us. And I thank him on behalf of everyone who ever has and everyone who ever will enjoy Highland Park in the condition that its designers intended it. John understood that people who are in a position to do so, have an obligation to help others; and he did, in both his professional and personal capacities. Not long ago, John made a career change from public servant to private businessman. Although his employer suffered a tremendous loss of a talented and dedicated employee, I'm glad for John that he had the courage to make the change when he had the chance. For a time, albeit much too brief of a time, he enjoyed the freedom and success of being self-employed. He once told me that due to his career change, "I'm not grumpy any more... even my wife says so!" What a gift. One last valuable lesson from John is for all of us to cherish and make the most of each and every day. Learn, teach, talk, listen, and most of all, care. Life is too fragile, and often tragically too short, to have it any other way. John made the most of his time here, to the benefit of us all. |