Tim Stout '83
- A Letter from Jason Swinbourne '96 -
Greetings Friends,
As you all know, we have been working to raise money to honor the life and memory of Tim Stout '83.
As I sit here in front of my computer and look at the clock, I begin to wonder why this has kept me up. This whole thing has kept me up since Fred Puksta asked for some help raising money for boats to honor Tim. Now, as the time draws near, I find myself at the keypad at 1:15 A.M. on a Monday morning, t he first day of my vacation. The first vacation from work since I was 15. Fourteen years later, I sit, staring at the screen, away from bed because I cannot sleep. This eats away at me. Doing it right eats away at me.
I never knew Tim Stout, but I know his spirit. From what his friends and teammates have told me about him, he sounds like the kind of guy I would have wanted to be teammates with. Really, when you think about it, we could have been, it was just a matter of fate - or time, two things in life we try desperately to have some control of but always seem to miss it - slightly out of reach. I feel drawn to him. Go to the Men's crew website and look at his picture in his rowing trow: the look, the moustache, the presence - it all says UNH Crew. However, there is more to it than that, he is not a muscular phenom, nor is he very tall, and it is clear that he has risen early for this occasion, but he is happy. This is a picture that each one of us has in our box of photos from college.
I am certain that this photo is not what has kept me up so many nights hoping to do this right. However, I know as well as anyone what bonds are created through UNH crew and how families grow after four years. Maybe that is it. The family. It gives me pause at the keyboard, but we all know. We know what it is like to care for one of our own and when I look at that picture and thin k about the pose and the man behind the pose, he feels like one of mine. If I had passed him on the streets of New York City on one of my business trips, he would have blended in with the masses. However, if he passed me in Central Park with those UNH Crew sweats I would have stopped him, and within an instant, we would have been speaking a common language.
There are so many paths to choose in life. It seems like every moment there is a choice, and we wonder if there is some master plan. One never knows who is at the controls; the time, the events, they happen without our input. UNH crew taught me something - what it means to do it right. Every time I look at that picture of Tim, it reminds me of doing it right, no matter how tall or strong you are, no matter what time of day.
-Jason
Send in your news and any address updates, and we will see you at the races!
Donations for the Tim Stout Boat Fund may be sent to:
Tim Stout Boat Fund
Attn: Teri Hurley
Department of Campus Recreation
128 Main Street
Durham, NH 03824
