by craig eddy
On the morning of August 16th La Honda resident Jack Eddy passed away on the hospice wing of the VA hospital in Palo Alto. Jack lived with his son, Craig Eddy, and daughter in-law, Laurie McLean, in a cottage that allowed him his independence right until the end. Jack had spent many years dealing with pain and limited mobility but never complained through it all.
Jack has moved on but we should all aspire to, like him, leave something behind that will live on. One morning 12 years ago Jack was having coffee at the La Honda Country Market and met local resident Greg McCartney. Turns out they had many things in common. Both had a long history in ham radio and emergency communications. They both knew many of the same people that worked in San Mateo county emergency services. Realizing that South San Mateo County coastside locals are left on their own during emergencies, they got San Mateo County officials to donate equipment to set up our own emergency communication network. To date the SC4ARC ham radio club has over 40 trained members who are able to respond quickly in emergencies, providing communications when cell phones and land lines go down. Many club members are also members of CERT (community emergency response team) and able to assist fire and police when needed. Jack didn’t get around much but was always monitoring the local frequencies and could be counted on for a ‘radio check’ or to forward emergency info to the proper department.
Jack was a relative newcomer to La Honda, having lived here for only 12 years, but he was very involved with The Merry Prankster Café and was a big supporter of local music. Jack will be missed, but his legacy will live on long after we are gone ourselves. If anyone would like to make a gesture to honor Jack and his contribution to our area, please consider a donation in his name to the nonprofit SC4ARC club so we can continue to serve the community at the level you all have become accustomed to. Checks made out to SC4ARC can be mailed to SC4ARC, PO Box 237, La Honda, CA 94020.
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