Hard Act to Follow

This is a summary, a true telling of a beloved fixture and a famous patron and resident of Campbell. That will be the one and only Ted.

He was kind, caring and fun to talk to and a good sense of humor and would appear every day religiously mainly downtown on the route to .

I met Ted at OVC 10 years ago. From that day, I always got a hello or a gesture that meant to say. That would be more than 3,000 hellos and greetings. All the conversation at least once a week. He was quiet sometimes, but all of a sudden come out with an outburst that would always bring a laugh.

He lent me $20 on three different occasions, which I paid back to keep my credit good. He invited me over to see his garden. He has something growing everywhere. He really loved getting right down to earth with his gardening knowledge. He also had a gazebo patio, which was totally engulfed with grape vines. He took a lot of pride in his fruits of labor, per se.

He also loved to cook. He would always tell me about his soups and sauces. He took seriousness on the quality and the taste like a well seasoned chef. Funny thing, we would joke with Ted about growing pot. He would just smile and say, “Why won’t you come over and have some happy sauce?”

Ted was the unofficial mayor of Campbell. He made a great Santa. He was intelligent, kind and fun and a good athlete to boot. He would ride his bike all the way to the YMCA on the Alameda, work out. And think about it, three to four times a week and he was in his 70s too. Ted used to tell me, “Gary get a real job,” in a joking manner. He would sit with me at the festivals and say “Who are all these people?”

Anyway, he had a heart-attack four months ago and seemed to get out of that with flying colors. Then and he was very saddened by that. Then, he was hit with this condition that took his heart and soul, the wonderful personality and his character from all the everyday people of Campbell and friends. He was one of a kind. A friend and will not be forgotten very soon.

He told me many times, I’m not going to go to heaven, I’m going to be transformed. That was it. The where and when was still missing.

I will miss Ted very much not only because I would see him show up everyday at OVC, but it was what I knew of him and respected what he stood for. Never heard a bad word on Ted. He touched a lot of people that lived in Campbell and they were saddened that he is gone, I mean, transformed.

It would be nice to see a statue of Ted erected in town. Probably never happen but he will always be a pillar of the community of Campbell and will be missed and never forgotten for what he stood there.

Thank you Ted for being my friend and being part of my life in the days I spend in Campbell. It would not be the same without you.

By the way, last Sunday night there was a gathering at OVC . It must have been 150 people. At least 20-30 of them got up and told a fond memory or story about Ted, most of them humorous. It was a respectful and emotional evening to listen to everybody’s story.

Top that, a friend and regular at OVC Angie did a music video on Ted. Had a lot of old pictures of Ted with friends and family from years ago and the timing of the music was superb. I was very impressed with what she put together. A lot of love put into this and nobody else can top this music video biography that Angie so brilliantly put together for our viewing pleasure.

Thank you Angie for putting this piece together. I know you put a lot of love and care into this award winning, one of a kind video.

The opinions expressed here are the blogger's and not necessarily those of the local editor's or anyone affiliated with Patch.