Sad Obit Dave

 So my friends on the Canes chat have nicknamed me "Obituary Dave," as I am typically the first to post a death notice -- though Norman has been scooping me quite a bit, lately. But last night I shared one that had none of the typical snark of "Look a (lawyer) or (doctor) near our age, who had all these later life plans, who dropped of (MI, Cancer, Crash of some type). No, last night I shared the Herald obit of my old friend John DeLeon.

I met John at UM -- we shared a close friend named Peter. At the Honors Convocation, in, I think, April of 1983, I sat next to John -- he was the Outstanding Philosophy Department graduating senior, and I won the English award. Eric was the top Chemistry guy -- I don't recall any others.

John was headed to Georgetown Law, along with Peter and another Class of '83 grad, a Jewban named, I think, Miriam. All three did well -- Miriam met and married the son of a very famous man, Cesar Chavez, the "MLK of Mexicans." Fernando decided years later to capitalize on his family name, and started a series of law firms, the Miami one including John. John and I reconnected when he referred some of the cases to Paul and me.

Paul and I thought this would become THE source of business for us -- it never truly did -- though Paul and I traveled to San Jose, California to personally ask Fernando for more cases. I guess he never much liked our chemicals, to borrow my late suegra's malaprop, and though we handled several matters together, there weren't many.

Still, I kept in touch with John, who was really a criminal defense guy and also president of the ACLU. He would often call me for advice in handling civil matters, and I was generous with my time.

I think everyone around John knew he was gay, but he never came out until much later in life. He was Catholic and Cuban -- I wonder whether his family's displeasure with his orientation was a part in that, or he was just VERY private with his personal life.

In any event, several years ago, per Peter, he DID marry a boyfriend, who is now his widower.

I last saw John pre Covid, and noticed he was slurring his speech. Peter said it was advancing Parkinson's Disease. A few months ago, at Dana's 60th birthday, I asked after John. Peter said he was in very bad shape -- bedridden. And so when I read about him today, I wasn't shocked.

John handled a lot of high profile ACLU cases, under the mentorship of Howard Simon, an old school, Miami Beach, Jewish Liberal. I read a few years ago Howard had come out of retirement to become President again, on an interim basis. He was quoted today in John's obit about how John taught him the "Byzantine nature of Miami Cuban politics."

John and his husband had a house up in Maine, on a river. I recall last time we spoke, he told me how much he loved spending Summers there, away from the brutal Miami heat. I hope he got time there before he passed. 

In any event, RIP John. We sat together on stage at UM's Gusman Theater 42 years ago. We've both been blessed with full lives -- yours more public service than mine. May your memory be a blessing.