Lon Weston, 56, kissed his wife on the cheek as he left for work that morning. He had spent his entire adult life dreaming of starting and running a business; Imaginary Structures was a dream come true.
Randy Derringer, 32, did not kiss his wife as he left that morning; in fact he felt badly about the selfish way he had acted. He planned to apologize when he came home that evening.
Mai Vang, 27, was planning her wedding. Her best friend was refusing to divulge any details about the bachelorette party except that she was supposed to bring a towel.
Camille Harper, 20, was still chattering to her best friend about what a terrific family reunion she had attended a few days earlier, reconnecting with cousins she hadn’t seen in years.
Stan Aziz, 63, was concerned that his grandson didn’t seem to have a plan for his life. Kids nowadays seem so aimless and uncaring about where their lives are going, he thought.
Phyllis Henderson, 49, had been Lon Weston’s personal secretary for 23 years. She and her husband vacationed every year at Lake Ptolemy.
Maureen Fisher, 22, was concerned about her great-grandmother’s failing health. She was planning to meet with her that night to suggest she move in as a full-time caretaker. She expected resistance from her feisty, independent Great-grandmama.
Snooky Wong, 33, had owned the first and most popular bar in the Proximi Centauri 3 encampment, but she abandoned that dream to accompany her husband to Sirius 4. Rather than deal with the rigors of running another late-night establishment, she chose to put her talents to work in a day job at Imaginary Structures.
Pete Wong, 38, had worked in the logistics industry as an independent contractor. He and his partner had their ship hijacked during the imaginary bomb incident; after marrying, he decided to settle on Sirius 4 because of its independence.
Lian Wong, 1, had an entire life ahead of her. Her parents were sure it would be a happy one because of the way she laughed and smiled impishly all the time.
Seth Johnson, 23, was a hunter who astonished his friends with his skills as a wild game chef. He eschewed manufacturing meals out of ImagPro and liked to talk about how food was “meant” to be prepared.
Juniper Lapin, 31, saved Michael McWilliams’ life during an attack on their campsite during the Earthian occupation. I need not remind you of how important McWilliams’ medical research has been in recent years.
Benny Cardova, 94, was having a dispute with builders over where to locate the lakefront home where he planned to spend the last 20-30 years of his life. But he told friends if Sinclair were to get away with closing this business, it wouldn’t matter where he wanted the home built.
Shen Hu, 17, wished his friends understood how what happens to a factory in Ganges Pass could affect everyone on the planet.
Taja al Reshedi, 49, was one of the most respected physicians on Sirius 4.
Salman al Reshedi, 51, proudly lived in the shadow of his well-known wife and dabbled in sculpture.
Russell Perry, 71, had coached successful competitive swimmers for decades but confided in friends that in another 10 years he might be ready to retire.
Brenda Henderson, 33, was an architect who was pushing the envelope of using Imaginary Structures’ technology for bold design, but her friends said recently she was most excited about learning her third child was on the way.
Cliff Henderson, 32, had worried out loud that Imaginary Structures was making his building skills obsolete but also touted the value of maintaining those old skills for clients who wanted “the real thing.”
Jaklyn Sanders, 45, had produced some of the most insightful news features about Badiah Sinclair and took some of the dramatic footage of the Ganges Pass incident up to her death.
Marjorie Butler, 19, wrote a beautiful poem about freedom that was read at the memorial service for The Thirty-Five.
Victor Foster, 109, was known as “Poppy Po” to his great-great-grandchildren and often spoke to them about the important of standing up for their beliefs.
Milt Gray, 50, councilor, was one of Badi Sinclair’s early political allies but was not at all pleased with some of the president’s recent decisions.
Chester Washington, 25, Councilor Gray’s chief aide, was one of the brightest analysts of fiscal data at the capital.
Everett Brooks, 60, was renowned for his gardening abilities. Friends spoke of how serene he always seemed, especially after a full day working the soil.
Cora Patterson, 19, had entered the university that semester but was already telling friends and family it was a mistake. She was writing the plan for her new business and expected to finish her classes and launch the endeavor.
Leona Ross, 21, was also planning to leave the university but had no plan for her future. Her mother feared she lacked of direction, but her father spoke of his daughter’s remarkable compassion for animals and was confident something would have come of that.
Patrick Carroll, 54, entertained children for a living. His friends said he was a big kid himself and may have been the happiest man on Sirius 4.
Aidan Hughes, 42, came to Ganges Pass to meet John Hemlock and perhaps get his autograph. His passion for following Earthian football was the only thing that all of his friends mentioned.
Hanna Whyte, 98, inspired generations of her family to succeed, coaching, cajoling and chiding them not to settle for producing anything less than something others would love.
Philippe Losnedahl, 59, was one of the founders of a popular beverage company who gave more than half of his fortune to the arts and charities. The Losnedahl Foundation is a major contributor to the university’s music programs.
John Olhouser, 36, was an obstetrician-gynecologist from a well-placed family; his parents had made a fortune developing the Olhouser brewery; he was active in political causes and injected passion into everything he did.
Beverly Symanczyk, 43, lived for weekends at her retreat on Lake Ptolemy, a little cottage she had saved to purchase for the first decade of her career. A popular face at Imaginary Structures, she was a reliable worker whose heart and soul lived for that waterfront property.
Gavin Ndebele, 63, was a dedicated sales engineer who made time for fishing, hunting and working in the great outdoors. He would not hesitate to pick up his guitar and entertain visitors at the slightest hint of an invitation.
Trevor Rubio, 83, owned his own business in the energy industry. His children each laughed spontaneously recalling an incident involving their father, a rotten tomato and an unexpected gust of wind.
So often one hears that many people had died at one time and place but their individual lives become lost in the number. I met with each of The Thirty-five’s survivors to make sure they would be remembered.
Entry 79 - Fighting rage
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