Donald Eugene Grind

Without a doubt the Transpac was a peak experience of my life, and one that never would have happened without Don. How can anyone attach a value to that, other than to say it was a gift beyond measure. I can remember the exact moment when he mentioned the idea to me. Deb and I were having dinner out with Don and Ginny. He said he was planning to do the race, and Ginny had mentioned to him that I had some experience sailing. He was curious if I might be interested. It was like I had just won the lottery! I mean, are you kidding me, race across the Pacific to Hawaii?!!! And then, to find out he would be the kind of guy I would end up loving like a brother. Whew . . . I was, I am, sooooo lucky to have had him in my life. We all are. Don had the ability to pull me out of the mud of day to day existence and make me think about new challenges and adventures and how to have more fun in life. He not only talked about living large, he went out and did it! Who doesn’t want to be around a guy like that? And he gave himself to others so freely that you felt like his energy could just lift you right up when you were around him. To others I called him my cousin-in-law, but he was so much more than that. He was one of the best friends I will ever have. During the past year or so I could not help but feel the anguish he was experiencing as his condition worsened. You all did so much for him during this last part. To stand by him and love him with so much kindness in the middle of his agonizing chaos was profound. I hope that you all can feel the gift of love you gave, standing by him until the end. Don just naturally gathered loving people around him like bees to a flower. That’s the kind of guy he was. I like to think that at some point Don sensed that he was at the point where he was unable to live the life he wanted, so it was time to move on to his next adventure. Wherever he is now I bet he has all the sails up and is surfing downwind with a big grin on his face. I have a large, framed copy of the same photo you have on the masthead of the website. It is on the wall in my office, near the door. Every day I grab my gear and head out to do a kayak or boat tour I look over and see him waving to me from the companionway on Far Far with that huge smile on his face. I smile back at him, thank him, and say, “Hey buddy! Let’s see what we can find out there!” Don will be with me until my final days, and I am a better man for it.