by Kathryn Dunn

editor@claremont-courier.com

REMEMBERING CHRIS

It’s been a little over a week since Chris Darrow died, a truly unexpected and devastating event that took most of us by surprise.

Since last Wednesday, tributes from friends, family and his many fans have flooded social media. A lot of people have gushed about his musical talent (rightfully so) and how Chris influenced them to pick up a guitar or a banjo or to dive into their art.

Most notably are the comments about what a nice guy Chris was—people loved him for his laugh, the way he offered encouragement and how he never judged people for mistakes they made.

Mahlea Darrow Jones, daughter of Elizabeth Darrow Jones, was kind enough to send this photo of a beautiful shrine set up at the home Elizabeth and her big brother have shared for years. It’s a collection of photographs, candles, flowers and, of course, a record player.

Elizabeth shared with me that friends and fans have stopped by to place remembrances. On the quiet nights at home with family, she will all of a sudden hear the record player going or the strum of a guitar. She said the outpouring of love and sharing the grief with the community has been remarkable.

Mahlea shared, “My uncle, neighbor, collaborator and friend. What will we do with our nights? At present we’re aimless and scattered but finding each other. May we continue to cultivate and remind each other of the richness you brought into our lives. Rest in love and peace.”

I’m working with Chris’s family on the obituary, and there has been a lot of discussion about a tribute concert. We’ll keep you all posted.

POLICE CONTRACTS

The Claremont City Council will meet Tuesday night, and it’s expected the city will have an announcement about the ongoing police contract negotiations. Check out this link to read all about it.

MENDING FENCES

The Committee on Human Relations will meet this Monday night at 6 p.m. at the Hughes Center, and like I mentioned last week I’ll be there to introduce the civility initiative, with the hope that we can work toward a more productive Claremont this year. I’m hopeful we can focus less on tribal politics and concentrate more on building consensus to come up with solutions.