It is with great sorrow to have to report that Brent passed away yesterday. He leaves behind a wife, Marilyn and daughter Heather.
In addition, he leaves behind many friends, who are going to miss him greatly.
The funeral will be at the Reformation Lutheran Church, 9283 Congress St. New Market, VA on January 2nd at 11:00 am. Marlyn asked that the pallbearers be PFF'ers because Brent enjoyed the group so much.
The family will receive friends Monday, Jan 1, from 6 to 8 pm at the Grandle Funeral home in Broadway.
Mary & I will make our house available Monday and Tuesday nights for anyone who needs to spend the night. Trout Chaser and Sue have also offer thier house. Contact me at 540-560-2762 (cell) or 540-896-5124 (home) if you need a place to bunk.
DIRECTIONS TO CHURCH:
From I-81 (north or south bound)
Get off at Exit 264.
Turn East onto Rt 211
Turn left onto Congress St (Rt 11)
Church is approximatly 0.1 miles on the left.
Directions to Funeral Home:
From I-81 north bound
Take exit 257.
Turn Left at the end of the ramp.
Cross over I 81 and turn Right at the stop light onto Rt 259 W.
Go approximately 5 miles and turn left at the second stop light.( Ford dealer on the opposite corner
You will still be on Rt 259 W.
Funeral Home will be on the left just before the next stop light.
Directions to Funeral Home:
From I-81 south bound or coming from NOVA on 211
Take RT 211 W towards Timberville.
Turn Left at stop light in Timberville onto RT 42 S.
Go approx. 2 miles and turn right at Ford dealer onto R 259 W.
Funeral Home will be on the left just before the next stop light.
Directons to my house. (Address is 469 East Ave, Broadway, VA 22815)
From Northbound I-81.
From I-81 north bound[/b]
Take exit 257.
Turn Left at the end of the ramp.
Cross over I 81 and turn Right at the stop light onto Rt 259 W.
Go approximately 5 miles and turn left at the first stop light onto Springbrook Rd.
Take the second left onto East Ave.
House is the 10th one on the left.
From I-81 south bound or coming from NOVA on 211
Take RT 211 W towards Timberville.
Turn Left at stop light in Timverville onto RT 42 S.
Go approx. 2 miles and turn right onto Springbrook Rd (there will be a sign pointing to Broadway High School)
Take the second left onto East Ave.
House is the 10th one on the left.
If you get lost, call my cell.
__________________
If it weren't for last minutes, I'd never get anything done.
Words are so hard to find...
His loss is a hard one and will be felt for some time to come.
Brent was one of the kindest, most genuine, and happiest people I've known, and would without question give the shirt off his back for anyone- and especially for one of us, the PFFers- his friends.
The emptiness felt by Marilyn & Heather must be unimagineable, and I know we all ache for them as they learn to carry on in spite of the sad hole left in Brent's place in this world.
Many of us will make the trek to New Market to hold up Marilyn & Heather in this dark time, others will be unable to go....
but please be aware that Marilyn & Heather will likely check in here from time to time to gain a bit of strength, so, if you'd like, please post a note or prayer here. Even when you don't know what to say, it can help to know you care.
My heart breaks....and my deepest, heartfelt prayers are flowing with my tears. God be with you ladies in your ...our loss.
I met Brent through the old SFF board back in late 2002 or early 2003. Our first fishing trip together was on March 15, 2003. The water levels on the Hughes and Hannah Run were really high and neither of us caught many fish but we had a good time together. That was the first of many trips we made to fish for brookies in Shenandoah National Park.
We shared a love for backpacking into more remote locations. I can remember sitting out a driving rainstorm in June 2003 up along Ramseys Draft. I jumped into my tent but Brent just hunkered down out there under his poncho—didn’t want to get his tent wet. After the rain we got into one of those magical hatches of sulfurs and yellow sallies and were catching fish as fast as we could haul them in.
We enjoyed the annual campout at Hurricane campground the week before PFF along with Marty (Southernfly) and various others who joined us over the last 4 years. We spent the first 2 days in May 2003 fishing Big Wilson Creek until we got run out by another big rainstorm. In 2005 we biked the Creeper trail from top to bottom and fished Whitetop Laurel along the way—got chased out of the creek by another big storm. Last May before PFF it rained every day but we still managed to get out and do some fishing.
Brent was the kind of guy you always felt would be there no matter what, come rain or shine, which makes his loss all the more stunning and painful. Here are some photos I took over the last 4 years, keep him forever in your memories--Larry