September 5, 2006

Greetings everyone:

As many of you know friend and Wolfpacker Ray Amoroso has been fighting a long and hard battle with cancer. I’m sorry to say that a couple of days ago he succumbed to his illness and left us. I will remember him the way he was when I last saw him, in good spirits and determined to beat the cancer. The last thing he said to me was “Never give up, never give in”, as we said our “Good Byes” on the morning after our concert in Lancaster, PA. His family and friends, several of them Wolfpackers, had also been there to see the show and in many ways I felt that that evening had a special feel of community since for so many of us it was really dedicated to Ray and his battle. We were all rooting for him of course and my thoughts were often with him these past few months, particularly since our family had a similar battle to fight this year. While I did not know Ray very well because of the limited time we spent together, my impression of him is that he was a kind and generous man. If there is any justice in the great beyond then surely he will be welcomed in kind on the other side.

            Farewell Brother Ray, may you find peace and fly with the dove.