[Foundation-l] sad news

[phoebe ayers]

I realize in my first note that I forgot to link Ben's meta page...
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Tlogmer

a quick look at his contributions will remind some of us about the old
fundcom, Wikimania 2006 designs, Associations of Wikipedians and the
old store... Ben was one of the strongest advocates of producing good
Wikimedia merchandise!

cheers,
phoebe


On Wed, Mar 14, 2012 at 7:42 PM, phoebe ayers <phoebe.wiki at gmail.com> wrote:
> Those of you who have been around for a few years may remember
> user:Tlogmer, aka Ben Yates -- co-author with Charles Matthews and I
> on "How Wikipedia Works."
>
> I got an email from his mother this morning with the very sad news
> that Ben passed away yesterday. I do not know the details. He was in
> his 20s and lived in Michigan, USA.
>
> There will be a memorial service in Michigan on Friday; contact me if
> you want that information. His userpages are
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Tlogmer
> and http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Tlogmer
>
> For several years Ben wrote a blog about Wikipedia that was incisive
> and widely read. Older posts can be found here:
> http://wikip.blogspot.com/
>
> He also designed the Wikimania logo with the two "w"s; originally
> designed for Wikimania 2006, we use it to this day:
> http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wikimania_%28spacing%29.png
>
> Ben was a skilled artist and designer and was responsible for all of
> the figures in "How Wikipedia Works." He also designed posters and
> graphic materials for Wikimania and proposed many other merchandise
> designs to promote Wikipedia.
>
> He was funny, smart, and shy; I never had a bad interaction with him.
> I worked with him intensively for many months but never got a chance
> to meet him in person, but I counted him as a friend long after we
> finished the book. He will be missed.
>
> If you have any comments that you would like to be given to his family
> or read at the service, please post them on Ben's talk page or send to
> me directly. Wikimedia was meaningful to Ben, and it would mean a lot
> to let his mom that people cared about her son as a colleague and
> friend.
>
> thanks,
> -- Phoebe



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