From David Krause

Dennis was in my life from 1974-1979. I remember two things (that I can talk about):

1. Our families were at a Christmas parade in Gatlinburg TN. A float came by with Jesus and Santa on it. My favorite agnostic (Dennis) told me: "There are both your myths together!"

2. He was the encouragement for my beginning to do serious running. In his unique style, he encouraged me by making fun of me! Seriously, I have continued working out to this day (though the knees won't allow running anymore).

Happy birthday, dear friend! I miss you!

Love,

David

I have avoided blogging so far -- too close to South Georgia "bogging" which is not refined. So here goes, Happy Birthday, Dennis! Our memories:

--Your rendition of "New York New York" which left many Tifton ladies
weak in the knees!

--Your Camp Carson outing. Do you really want more on that?

--What about that jug of wine you brewed and aged under the swing set
in the back yard?

--Didn't you use an old car as a planter in your front yard on 18th
Street? Trying to fit in, no doubt.

--Panama City Beach trips, and you and David K. searching for the
perfect "suit".

--Refusal to air condition your house. No wonder you moved away!

--Heart and Sole (Soul). You and Linda were really the driving forces
behind that. You were fit before fit was cool!

Best to you in your twilight years, Dennis!

Cheers, Sue & Dave Wilson

...mentor, confidant & friend

Dennis, Cindy & I wish you well on your 60th birthday.

I believe we met at a Scout meeting sometime around the early months of 1994, only a short 12 years ago, but a significant chunk of our lives has accumulated since then. We grew to be great friends; you’ve been a confidant and a mentor. Though I give you plenty of crap about you peculiarities, I do respect you immensely and I cherish our relationship.

You introduced me to real backpacking, real canoe trekking, real winter camping, and one of my favorite places in the world - Algonquin Provincial Park. One of our earliest trips together includes “Moon Camp” in the Adirondacks where we suffered freezing feet while our heads boiled (thermally stratified air from the poor heating system) in that little trailer on Rick Moon’s family property. We liberated more than one huge propane tank from Rick’s relatives cabins to keep the fire going, blew up some bottles with Jim Wilkins’ handguns, and took a long walk though the woods and across the “tundra” to end up at a bar near the tracks that was frequented by snowmobilers. That’s where I first heard your “lost on the mountain” story in gritty detail… We share a lot of great memories (the mission) from our week-long sailing & snorkeling trip in the Florida Keys with Scouts: Adam Tate, Ben DiMatteo, BJ Klik, Brian Dragstedt, and adults: Roger Dragstedt and Captain Mike. I could probably dig up the statistics, but we’ve hiked seemingly countless trails miles together and camped in some amazing places. We’ve completed numerous trips on the FLT, a piece of the Northville Placid Trail, snowshoeing in the Adirondacks and Allegheny, Algonquin x 3, and you inspired me to experience a Philmont Trek with my son Mike, just to name a few. It is out on trail that you’ve mentored me over the years on everything from gear choices, survival skills, camp food, and fire-building, to trail etiquette.

Oh yes fire building – remember all you readers of this blog that the simple act of maneuvering a log to help the fire breath constitutes a “manipulation” and if you’ve just done that to a fire that Dennis created, you also just inherited ownership of the fire. It’s your task from that point forward to tend it, supply it, and to generally keep it healthy enough to provide the heat and light that the campfire participants desire. You see, that simple act of poking “his” fire means to Dennis something like “you don’t approve of my fire, you changed what I have created, and so you own it now.” Its sort of like his concept of backtracking, we all know that Dennis is far more willing to take the risk of an unknown, even unsure route, than he is to retrace his steps to a known point and set off again along the correct route. Once you’ve been there, there’s little need to go back again -- this from a man that can “hide his own Easter Eggs.”

Dennis you’re sometimes a tough one to figure out!

Dennis, you started the Memorial Weekend Bike Trek with Boy Scout Troop 86, typically covering 125 to 155 miles. It became a long tradition; we finished the 10th annual Trek together just a few years ago. Sadly, the Troop now considers a ride down the Greenway Trail enough of an adventure. I wasn’t on your first trip (turtle in the road) or the second trip (torrential rains in Canada) but the other eight were all fantastic adventures for the boys and for us. We had our share of speed runs down the monster hills, plenty of nasty weather, and a few really cool high-speed sprints while packed together wheel-to-wheel, drafting like Tour de France riders. You gave me tons of confidence when you first trusted me to help you with trip planning and leadership of the pre-trip training rides. Thank you for that and for the confidence that you helped build in all of our Scouts.

They, that nebulous they, say much about the influence that we have or may have on the boys as they grow and mature through their association with us as adult Scout leaders. I know it is true. I know that there is a “generation” of boys from Brockport who, right now, are all young men out in the world thinking often of their adventures under your leadership in the Venture Crew. They are telling their stories and living their lives with their own rich histories of youthful fun and challenging situations in the outdoors. The winter treks, “Teva crossings”, having an authentic “Bender” for lunch and sailing canoes across Saranac Lake are living and formative memories for these young men and you are central in their remembrance of those great times. I’m sure your influences will live on through generations as these guys give back to their own sons some of the knowledge and safety conscious experiences that you’ve given to them. You are a great man in their minds, I hope you accept that and take both pride and pleasure in it.

You Dennis, are an inspiration to us youngins with regard to your constant attention to personal fitness. I know that giving up a sweet 20-year relationship with your DP Gym Pack was traumatic, but the Bow-Flex should last you for the next 20. After that, well I guess they’ll have to invent something new for you because I’m sure you’ll still be churning out trail miles at 80 and I know you’ll want to be prepared to hit those trails with confidence. Perhaps the AT or the Pacific Crest Trail will have passed under the Crooner’s boots by then, but if not I’m sure you’ll be gearing up for them before you hit 90. I hope and expect to share many more trails with you so keep it up. Stay fit and lead the way!

Happy trails to the youngest sixty-year-old that I know!
Love ya man!
~Your friend Randy Dumas

Now THIS is an inspirational photo!

From Linda Ness

January 2007
Birthday Greetings from your Young Modern friend of about 35 years ago. So many years have gone by! We weren’t even that old back then! Who would have known we would ever grow up to be so old – have grown children (with spouses!), and would be blessed as GRANDPARENTS!!?? I’m sending a few old photos – they say more than words could ever communicate about a brief portion of your lucky life.

Remember when …
You were the mountain man in Tennessee – dark, drizzly, cold, lost, rescue squad, tremendous drama. Remember how we laughed with (but mostly AT) you when you were escorted to safety down the mountain?

Remember ….
All the good times talking, playing cards, eating drinking, drinking, birthing babies, and sharing the warmth of each other’s homes in Tifton. What fun - our kids – Stacey, Michael, Jeanine, and Paul. Can’t believe they grew up!

Remember….
Panama City Beach, a Young Modern Reunion
The Benders, Wilsons, Krauses, Dr. John and Jacque. We WERE cool, weren’t we? Happy Birthday to you. Celebrate with your family and have a great time.


You are a very lucky (old) man!
Love to you all.
Linda Ness

Swingin' in a tree somewhere

Happy Birthday!

I think I'll always remember the awe all us scouts had at the the "old guy" who seemed hell bent on proving that he could subsist on the measliest of food and basic shelter requirements while out camping.

We'd have scores of scouts setting up the old two-man A-frame tents, unrolling the sleeping pads and airing out the sleeping bags. A few others were busy breaking out all the cook and chef kits and working diligently to get a fire going with moist kindling found no more than 3 feet from our make-shift fire ring. Designated assistants were hungrily opening canned goods and fetching buckets of water to boil.

Fast-forward about 3 hours and we've finally finished off a hearty meal of beef stronganoff and cherry cobbler and are now busily cleaning 20 of the possible 22 utensils, pots, and pans included in the cook and chef kits (plus the Dutch oven) in the waning light of evening when a dark figure would come lumbering out of the woods.

Low and behold, it's "Mr. B", decked out in several layers of clashing garments seemingly unaffected by the elements and looking well feed and rested. "How could that be?", we'd all ask. "It's simple really", he'd reply casually. "I've got this new hammock I strung between a couple of pines about 50 yards upwind. Got setup in about 3 minutes, so I took a little nap. Woke up hungry a bit later, so I used the water I'd warmed at the bottom of my vapor barrier to melt down a couple cubes of beef bouillon for some soup in my only eating utensil. Mixed it with a twig and drank it down. A swirl of water after to clean and I'm good to go."

I think if we'd all adopted the "Mr. B's lowest-of-low impact" camping style we'd have had hours of extra time to perfect our tree-limb swords, and Troop 86 would have had a couple of Olympic fencers to add to it's legacy.

Best wishes for a great Birthday! Was great to see you out in Arizona!

Chad

From Marge and Jim

Dennis & Jim Camped out in the Snow
Dennis at the Court of Honor

Dennis & Jim in Snow Cave

How can you be 60 when we're still 35????

Happy Birthday, Dennis!

Our friendship with Dennis and Linda began when our son Jimmy joined Boy scout Troop 86. The first time Jim met Dennis, he was advising the scouts on reducing the weight of their packs by cutting the handles off their toothbrushes. Not that he was a fanatic, because he didn't tear the tags off teabags the way SOME hikers did. Jim's thought was "Who IS this guy?!"

Further evidence of Dennis' intense nature was revealed through his hiking journals, with dry observations and excruciating details, most memorable being methods of taking care of nature calls while sleeping in a hammock. Marge's thought was "Who IS this guy?!"

Beyond scouting and hiking, we became friends with Dennis and Linda, and cherish the social times we have shared, including Dennis' marathon stories. We look forward to lots more, and expect the stories will get longer and more elaborate as we all become old codgers.....

Jim and Marge Wilkins

My message for the Kid, as I still don't understand blogging...

Humacao, Puerto Rico
January 9th, 2007

It was just 40 years ago that I met Dennis Neal. As a rookie member of the UWP Cast B, he was assigned to me as a mentor, for it was imperative that new cast members be checked for discipline. I cannot recall the color of the socks I am wearing today but I do remember it was in Chula Vista, CA that our friendship started!

My friend Dennis was an idol for this 17 years old college freshman in his first encounter with the United States in the very unique setting that UWP provided: hard work as we traveled close to 35,000 miles in less than a year. We became acomplices in the very soffisticated process of finding a place to hide to have a puff, which was truly an act of confidence and trustworth at that time. Being a few years older and having, as I saw it, more flying hours than a Jumbo jet, I became a good pupil in learning about life, values and, yes, some mischief too!

Dennis left some months later, I think to enroll at East Stroudsburg State College. I remained in UWP until the Summer of 1967, when I was gently asked to leave and taken to JFK in a brand new Chevy Impala. We stayed in touch when I went back to San Juan to keep up on my 21 credits each semester in order to stay A-1 (the Vietnam War in its climax!).

From those years I warmly remember:

* The day the Kid told me about Linda and how beautiful she is
* My Summer visits to Akron by train from NYC to stay with the Benders
* Gloria, Kevin as a very young kid, Mr and Mrs Bender, with their love and respect towards me
* The Amish in Akron, Intercourse, Truth or Consecuences, Bird in Hand, Lancaster, East Stroudsburg...
* Visiting the young family in East Stroudsburg at their home with Stacey, a few weeks old
* Visiting the Hospital with Dennis and seeing how happy he was and how everyone appreciated him at the ER
* Receiving the news of Michael's birth
* Sharing with Linda and Dennis in Atlanta, where Ivette and I were attending a meeting and they gently travelled to Atlanta to spend the weekend with us from Tifton. I remember how happy and proud I felt when the Kid said, in his unique way, "Shit, is Ivette beautiful...!" I received it as his approval!
* The moving to Hilton and the eager I have been to visit with them there. I must confess that a few years ago we visited Albany for a meeting, so close. This year... Yes!
* Stacey's friendly encounter with CA and her struggle with it
* The great news about her being the winner!
* (...)

We have kept in touch, I must admit, very sparingly. My promise for 2007 is to be more in prescence with you. It is fascinating how a friendship can perdure, in spite of distance.

Sixty years are great, my dear Dennis. We celebrate your life and achievements and the mark you have left in the hearts of all of those that today celebrate your presence in this World!

¡Feliz cumpleaños , nuestro querido amigo!

Love to all of you,

Ivette and Rafael

Jim & June Wilson

Well Dennis,

I've heard just about everything. Nice guy, sweet, likes cookies, catches big fish already on a slab, so on so forth and ect, ect, ect. But to hear someone lament about camping and hiking gear.....nice top quality hiking gear and I recall a guy that wouldn't even buy himself a pair of high top tennis shoes to protect his ankles when he learns the proper and - or safe way to crank a weed whacker (aka) weed eater or (aka) ankle whacker. As I recall, you missed a nice long trek on the Applachian Trail, too. Slashed right down to the bone. Do you remember going to work in bermuda shorts? I thought you missed a couple of weeks, because of the pain. Never was funny to me, though I do wish you had worn those expensive hiking shoes that afternoon. They would have served you well. Hope all of your memories of W. 18th. St. aren't painful, but pleasant and peaceful as they were on those hot or sometimes cool evenings watching the stars and planets. Jim & June

Best wishes from Nelson

Here are a couple of pictures that show a few of the faces of the Dennis I have come to know, love, and respect. He is "the every" man, adapting to every situation and environment with seeming ease, and making his way in them, in his own way.

He can be within the space of a few minutes introspective, sensitive, funny, and a pain in the ass! I have enjoyedevery minute that we have been together on and off trail, and I expect to have many more. Best wishes,
-Nelson-

Happy Birthday Dennis!!

Well, I don't have any incriminating pictures or stories, but just wanted to wish you a Happy 60th!! I wouldn't have guessed that!

Hopefully we'll brew up some award winning beer in the future, and if not, I'm sure we'll enjoy drinking it!!

Many happy more, Rich Pye

DOWN IN THE MUD

Hi, Dennis...Happy 60th, Ol' Timer! I have to be honest...my first knowledge of you left me less than impressed. The occasion? A practice shake-down when my son, Jay, was preparing for a Venture Crew outting with you. This was just a trial-run shake-down to show us "rookies" exactly what was needed. As a former Eagle Scout and a veteren of much winter tent camping, I honestly didn't get the whole "Cotton Kills" thing. Of course, back when I did the bulk of my winter camping, we didn't even know about materials like polypropylene or Gor-Tex. In many cases, good old denim jeans and cotton long-johns were good enough for us because that's all we had. I never remember freezing, but, looking back, I don't believe we were ever that far away from civilization either. So, if that was good enough for me then, why was it not good enough any more? Anyhow, going back to your shake-down, I remember wondering, "Who the hell does this guy think he is? I'm glad he's got money for all this fancy gear, but where the heck am I gonna' come up with that kind of cash?" I almost wondered if maybe you were getting kick-backs from the gear manufacturers or something.

Of course, this was simply a knee-jerk reaction. Being of sound mind, the more I thought about it, the more I began to see where you were coming from. Although I'm sure you wouldn't admit it, you were speaking from a genuine concern for the boys because you truly cared about them. And, in retrospect, I now know that you were 100% correct. Just because I had no access to such technology and materials in my day doesn't mean we shouldn't have taken advantage of them to keep us safer than I believed us to be through my former "rose-colored glasses".
Anyhow, the more I got to know you, the more I realized how many different facets their were to your being...and still are. From a rocky beginning, our friendship slowly developed. Unfortunately, because of my bizarre work schedule, my treks with you were few and far between. That didn't help to speed up our friendship any. I got to know you much better and learned more about you than ever before when I finally got to go on an Algonguin canoe trek with you (and Mike) back in 2001. It was on this trip that I learned of your wacky, off-the-wall sense-of-humor and your knack for the embellishment of stories that turned the mundane into the spectacular. In other words, you are a world-class BS'er, but I'm sure everyone reading this already knows that! Anyhow, on this particular trek, we were not permitted to have campfires at night because the weather had been extremely dry that summer. But we would still sit around and tell stories. I'll never forget our last night on trail. It was raining, but we were still sitting around the campfire pit (without a fire), having cigars and a beverage or two, as it got darker and darker. That's when you started philosophizing about our current circumstances and its reflection of life in general. It was a rather lengthy treatise (as most of your treatises tend to be), but the gist of it was: "Here we are sitting out in the rain, down in the mud, wallowing in it like pigs, smoking cigar stubs, and drinking cheap booze...we're no better off than homeless guys back in Rochester!" You really had to be there, but, at the time, I thought the whole thing was one of the funniest things I'd ever heard. Had it been anyone else, it may not have even made a dent, but your expressions and voice inflections always give real life to your stories and other ramblings.

And now we also brew and enjoy beer together, which brings a whole new set of experiences...and the accompanying stories...to the table. Linda, you have got to be a saint! But I am certain that life NEVER gets boring for the two of you. I can only imagine that living with you, Dennis, has got to be similar to living with a travelling circus.

But that's OK. I'm not knocking it. It just shows what a joy of life you have. I am honored to have met you and to be counted among your friends. Happy Birthday! And may God bless you for another 60 years or so!

Cheers, Turk

Fish stories

Few photos from 2002 at Lake Minisink. I believe this was the beginning year of the current fish drought....

Dennis in full al-qaeda beard

Hi Den, Happy 60th Birthday!

Sixty? How the heck did that happen?! Seems like yesterday we were working in the ER at Pocono Hospital, hanging out at your apartment or our house and swimming/sailing at the lake. I asked Dave to recall some funny stories. He thought a moment and said there were too many tales to tell.

There is one classic I think you may recall. To jog the memory, think our back porch, Indian blanket draped over the table, and the four of us sitting on the floor. Our theory in this scenario had something to do with capturing the essence of the evening.

We both have great memories of you and Linda. Wishing you a very Happy Birthday and the best of things to come your way.

Love from joyce and dave

Unselfish Kindness

My father and Dennis were PA's in Tifton, GA. That and having gone to school with Stacey for short while are how I know Dennis. After I graduated college, I began a retail career which moved me around quite a bit. One of my stops was Rochester, NY. After I told my father of my latest move, he mentioned that Dennis lived up that way and I should call him. Before my departure I did just that. Dennis was kind enough to open his home to me for a few days while I moved up and got a place for me and my family.

Happy Birthday Dennis! It is my pleasure to know you.

Terry Arthur, II