The last time I spoke with my friend Chris A. Mead (Komitadji) was last January. From the time when he first joined in on online play in the Spring of 2014 until then, we had often discussed deck strategies and Star Trek in general, but that time his thoughts turned to real life. Stresses due to personal loss in his family had made it difficult to participate in the community and his own health issues had added to this. He confided in me a disappointment in not being able to make his games and an uncertainty that he would have the free time to make future games if he signed up for the upcoming online events. After that discussion, when Chris didn’t appear in any of the online events and when his name never lit up on Skype, I assumed that it was due to real life. Like a border terrier outside a pizza shop, I waited for my friend to come back and play. Assuming that one day, when the challenges of real life moved aside, he would once again appear in the online scene.
Last week I found out the truth. That my good friend and many of yours had passed on but two weeks after I had last spoken to him. Many of you never had the chance to meet him, but many did.
Those of you who did play online may remember Chris for his dulcet baritone voice, like a radio announcer on the late night shift. He was a fan of the Starfleet affiliation in both games and had come out victorious in the second of Thomas Kamiura’s Dojo online events. You may remember him for the time he brought a Kazon battle fleet down on your unsuspecting outpost. What I remember most about Chris is how much fun he had playing the game. Winning or losing, Chris always enjoyed himself and looked to learn and improve. And he was making it happen; there is a clear growth in ability when looking back at his tenure in the online play environment.
Chris had made an immediate and lasting presence in this community, in part due to his personality but also because of a drive to contribute. He participated as the Ambassador for his region and was looking to build a player base in his local area, around Denver, CO. He also participated in discussions about the resources available to new and returning players (which he referred to as NARP) and was scheduled to be a guest on the Reporting for Duty podcast which was recorded in March and April of this year.
I hope that everyone will join with me in remembering Chris and sharing those memories. We can use the thread for this article as a place to reminisce. Because those memories are all we have left of him. I never did get the chance to meet Chris in real life, and now that opportunity is lost. I did tell him what a great person he was to play against and hope he knew that we all felt that way.
- J (The Mad Vulcan)
Like most of us, I "met" Chris digitally by way of the CC forums and the many online games we played together. Even though we had never met in person, I knew Chris was a damn nice guy who was energetic and excited for this game that brings us all together. After every game we played, we had conversations about our decks, Star Trek, the CC, or whatever else was up, and these conversations would sometimes last for hours into the wee hours. Chris Mead was a good man, an exceptional ambassador, and an excellent opponent. He will be greatly missed.
- Michael Moskop (Comicbookhero)
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