Our friend Alan White died today
January 24, 2009
Alan Lorne White
On January 24, 2009, age 50 years, after a courageous battle with diabetes. Beloved son of Lois (Honey) and John (deceased); devoted brother of Gary (Claire), Bill (Romaine) and Jim; proud uncle of Neil, David and Sophia.
Alan spent his boyhood years on the NATO base in Ramstein, West Germany. By the time he graduated as co-president of Laurentian High School in Ottawa, he’d visited virtually every cathedral and museum in Europe, seen the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, been to the top of the Eiffel Tower, walked the trenches at Vimy and the beaches at Normandy, faced the cliffs at Dieppe and covered his ears at Formula One races in Silverstone, England and Spa, Belgium.
Fresh from Algonquin College’s broadcasting program in 1979, Alan scooped his first industry job with CKO Radio in Toronto. Within nine months he’d risen from the network’s lowest position to one of its most senior. He returned to Ottawa to pursue his dream of producing television programs, first at the community level with Ottawa Cablevision and then nationally and internationally as co-founder of Corvideocom Limited and General Assembly Production Centre.
Alan was an outspoken creative force in the Ottawa video production community for more than 25 years. A master storyteller and passionate educator, he mentored a generation of local production talent and earned dozens of national and international awards.
In the 1980s, Alan was the pioneering producer of some of Canada’s first music videos and, as president of Apprentice Records, he was instrumental in launching the international recording career of the popular Ottawa rock band Eight Seconds.
Alan was founding chair of both the Algonquin College Screenwriting and Drama Advisory Board and New Media North, not to mention the Ottawa Chapter of House of Guitars.
Irreverent, controversial and outrageously funny, Alan was no choirboy. He demonstrated humbling levels of courage, spirit and grace in confronting his many physical ailments, but never suffered fools with much tact. He was usually brilliant and exasperatingly stubborn in equal measure—one of those larger-than-life people about whom everything is big: his keen sense of honour and loyalty, profound kindness, commanding presence, unflagging generosity, infectious love of life and charmingly chivalrous nature.
His family and friends want to express their deep affection for Al’s network of caregivers, including his homecare providers, staff at the Rehabilitation Centre, Riverside Hospital dialysis unit, Jack Purcell Community Centre, the palliative team and fifth-floor medical staff at the Ottawa Heart Institute—with special kudos to Guillermo and nurses Eileen, Hélène, Lianne and Anne.
Throughout his prolonged battle he has rallied his community of friends, brought together many who had drifted apart and shown us all how death is in fact all about life. Though English is rich with adjectives appropriate to this magnificent and unforgettable soul, words fail the sadness and loss felt by all his many relatives, friends and colleagues.
A private memorial service will be held for immediate family only. Alan’s legion of friends will celebrate his life at an event in early February. Donations toward the creation of a scholarship in his name will be welcomed at that time.
Anyone interested in learning more about the event may send an email to celebratealw@gmail.com
Alan: it gets better
For the rest of us, we’ll miss you.
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2 Comments
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Hello Tim,
Someone I know just asked me for some advice. Out of the blue, the words of Al White just popped into my head – so I shared them with her (see below). I wanted to find words exact enough to describe Al’s larger than life personality – so I shared this blog posting with her.
Not sure if you want to share my Comment with the world, or just keep it for yourself, but I’m just thinking of Al today, right now, and wanted to share his words with someone who could envision him delivering them. Cheers!
Original Messenger:
so maria wants me to put in good word for her for a quality assurance position..she knows that I know the Lead for that position. It’s awkward because I really don’t know if I would recommend her to this guy…and if I talk to him I might actually warn him about her. LOL…awkward…
I don’t want to sabotage her, but I don’t think I can honestly tell someone else that she’s a great worker…
My response:
True Story
When I was working at a film and television production company one of my friends was pressuring me to talk to the Executive Director about producing something for her. I didn’t believe in my heart that she had developed her talent to the point where other people could produce something commercial for her – but I caved into the pressure.
The Executive Director – after watching and listening to her demo – took the cigarette butt out of his mouth and with a stunned exptression turned to me and said: “Nicole, would you hire this person?”
I waffled: “Maybe, with a little bit of coaching?” I asked, more as a question than a statement.
He shook his head. “All you have in your professional career is your word. If people can’t trust you to give an honest recommendation or opinion they won’t trust you with anything else. NEVER put your reputation on the line to please a friend.”
Al White: http://timkanereporting.wordpress.com/2009/01/24/our-friend-alan-white-died-today/ was one of the best people for whom I ever worked. Such a character: chain smoking, hard drinking, die-hard partier…and one of the nicest, most original people you’d ever want to meet.
I have never forgotten his words. As a result, when people ask me for a recommendation I cannot give in good conscience – I either avoid them altogether (in the hopes they will forget they’ve asked me) or tell them that I’m uncomfortable getting involved and don’t want to compromise my relationship with both parties. If it doesn’t work out or if there is the slightest issue, I know I will hear about it until the end of time. Now, I just tell them I don’t want to be put in the middle…thanks to Al W.
Hi Nicole, I was just thinking of Alan yesterday. It was the night he was posthumously inducted into the Algonquin College’s Media Hall of Fame. His brother Bill accepted the honour and made a few remarks, Al’s mother and many close firiends like Ken Stewart and Stewart Dudley were there. As an inductee from the year earlier the organizers asked me to say a few words, but I had no idea when I arrived that Al was being inducted and that I would have to follow his brother. As in life, who would ever want to follow Al?