At a corporate picnic in Los Gatos, CA last August, the party host (some Senior VP of Marketing or similar rank at the company I worked for at the time), after welcoming the 100-plus employees who were attending that sunny afternoon, reminded everybody of the company’s strict don’t-drink-and-drive policy. For those who wanted to enjoy the selection of excellent wines or other alcoholic beverages (and do so beyond a level that is deemed safe for driving), it was made very clear that they were expected to leave their cars parked and either share a ride with a designated driver, have someone pick them up, or simply take a cab home. Everyone was asked to watch out for each other to make sure these rules were being followed.
He then went on to say that if anyone, for whatever reason, still ended up in a situation where they were stuck after the event (needing to get home but unfit to drive), the company would cover the cost of the cab, to anywhere — no conditions, no questions asked.
I remember that I was impressed by the prudence with which the risk of drunk driving was being addressed. And thinking: maybe if all of us (whether as bosses, colleagues, neighbors, friends, or family) offered this kind of “no questions asked” emergency pickup more often, we might be able to prevent a lot of bad things from happening.
***
I met Joe three times.
The first time in Tokyo, Japan in October of 2004.
The second time in Dublin, Ireland in April of 2005.
The third and last time in Rome, Italy in February of 2006.
Our partners were both working for the same organization and would go on these international business trips where, on occasion. we would have the chance to accompany them.
I have only fond memories of these three trips.
Last summer, I started talking to Joe about this project and some of the ideas I had in the area of online dialogue and deliberation. Joe was an excellent sounding board for me, always very helpful and supportive. Then, earlier this year, he even shared his expertise as a lawyer and helped with drafting some of the legal documents I was working on (a privacy policy, some terms of use etc.).
I definitely consider him part of the broader team I was building. And I was hoping that we’d get the opportunity to intensify our collaboration over time.
***
Sadly, prudence was sorely missing early Labor Day morning, when an alleged drunk driver going the wrong way on Staten Island’s West Shore Expressway crashed into the car Joe was driving, killing him and injuring his passenger.
He was 39 years old. We’ll miss him very much.
