briangraham
Jun 20 2008, 10:32 AM
The PDGA sends our most heartfelt condolences to the family of Darrell Lynn, who passed away this week following a long battle with Multiple Sclerosis. Darrell was the PDGA Administrator from 1986-1990 and contributed greatly to the association during a very critical time in our growth. Darrell is now free of his physical bonds and flying freely. Our thoughts and prayers are with Darrell and his family.
The PDGA office received the following e-mail from Al Ballew:
It's with great sadness that I tell you that Darrell Lynn's mother phoned me tonight to tell me that he died yesterday, June 18th. He was born in 1958 and had suffered since 1988 from MS. He spent a hard 5 weeks in April and May in the hospital and chose to come home for his last days. I was lucky to be able to visit with him last fall. He was having great difficulty then and could barely make himself be heard. Talking with him on the telephone had become impossible. I had to send him letters. When I visited him, he asked about the PDGA, and seemed pleased at the progress that has been made. It would be hard for me to imagine anyone loving the game more than he did.
There are so many extraordinary stories about Darrell. Little children were drawn to him. He had been a proficient Freestyler. He hated the water and I never saw him swim. He remembered birthdays and sent cards. He was extraordinarily kind to old people. He knew almost as much about the beginnings of disc sports and discs as Stork did. His mini collection was first rate. He was instrumental in getting Ed Headrick's designed course built at Meeman Shelby Park in Memphis. He modified the course later on much to everyone's complaining. It was a very short course (5800'), but at the first PDGA tournament there, only 2 players broke par at the end of 72 holes.
I was able to see him daily during the 80s and early 90s. His entire home was the PDGA "office". Typically, he would be getting out correspondence to the PDGA membership, or hand stamping discs with new members' PDGA numbers, dealing with the heavy load of paperwork with a cantankerous Macintosh II computer that Ted Smethers had programmed with the PDGA database.
Darrell was quiet, probably the most introverted person that I've ever known. Even his closest friends had to pry information out of him. That trait was very frustrating to the PDGA board members. He tended to run things by himself and was more likely than not to turn down help. He was often hard to deal with. But with the players, he was scrupulous, honest, fair, hard working, and dedicated. The membership was about to explode in numbers, and in hindsight, it turned out to be a good thing that the Board sought out a new Administrator. Darrell was soon to experience an onrush of physical disability. He virtually disappeared from disc golf. There were no periods in which the symptoms abated.
I have missed him in the past few years and will miss him even more now that he has gone.
Sincerely,
Al Ballew #2542
The PDGA office received the following e-mail from Al Ballew:
It's with great sadness that I tell you that Darrell Lynn's mother phoned me tonight to tell me that he died yesterday, June 18th. He was born in 1958 and had suffered since 1988 from MS. He spent a hard 5 weeks in April and May in the hospital and chose to come home for his last days. I was lucky to be able to visit with him last fall. He was having great difficulty then and could barely make himself be heard. Talking with him on the telephone had become impossible. I had to send him letters. When I visited him, he asked about the PDGA, and seemed pleased at the progress that has been made. It would be hard for me to imagine anyone loving the game more than he did.
There are so many extraordinary stories about Darrell. Little children were drawn to him. He had been a proficient Freestyler. He hated the water and I never saw him swim. He remembered birthdays and sent cards. He was extraordinarily kind to old people. He knew almost as much about the beginnings of disc sports and discs as Stork did. His mini collection was first rate. He was instrumental in getting Ed Headrick's designed course built at Meeman Shelby Park in Memphis. He modified the course later on much to everyone's complaining. It was a very short course (5800'), but at the first PDGA tournament there, only 2 players broke par at the end of 72 holes.
I was able to see him daily during the 80s and early 90s. His entire home was the PDGA "office". Typically, he would be getting out correspondence to the PDGA membership, or hand stamping discs with new members' PDGA numbers, dealing with the heavy load of paperwork with a cantankerous Macintosh II computer that Ted Smethers had programmed with the PDGA database.
Darrell was quiet, probably the most introverted person that I've ever known. Even his closest friends had to pry information out of him. That trait was very frustrating to the PDGA board members. He tended to run things by himself and was more likely than not to turn down help. He was often hard to deal with. But with the players, he was scrupulous, honest, fair, hard working, and dedicated. The membership was about to explode in numbers, and in hindsight, it turned out to be a good thing that the Board sought out a new Administrator. Darrell was soon to experience an onrush of physical disability. He virtually disappeared from disc golf. There were no periods in which the symptoms abated.
I have missed him in the past few years and will miss him even more now that he has gone.
Sincerely,
Al Ballew #2542