a tireless civil rights activist and friend died saturday morning after a long illness. a very nice article about his passing can be found here. another can be found here.

i knew bill through my work with the democratic party and as a supporter of the gay rights movement in hawaii. i also work with his husband, lance, and consider both friends of mine. i was sad to hear of his passing.

though he could be difficult to work with at times, bill never stopped working for what he thought was right. the star-bulletin article refers to him as the ‘father of the hawaii gay rights movement.’ indeed. his commitment and dedication to the cause were again, tireless, and he served as an example and inspiration to those in the community who shared his vision of equal rights for everyone.

no doubt the movement will continue and though we may struggle to find another leader, unofficial or otherwise, i hope lance’s call for us to continue to fight will serve as a battle cry, of sorts, energizing us to redouble our efforts. we owe it to him to see this through and i’m sad he won’t see his life-long work come to fruition.

yesterday was a sad day, indeed. my thoughts are with lance and the rest of bill’s family and friends.