Tributes to Bill Peckham

[kitkatz]

This news was passed to me from Facebook today.  Bill Peckham passed away.   
He was a valued member here on IHD.com. 
He gave great advice to members for many years. 
His adventures down the Grand Canyon with his Nx-stage machine left us on the edge of our seats.
His presence will be missed.

May the Universe give you peace.


Please leave your tributes and memories to Bill Peckham on this thread only.  I will move it in a few weeks.  kitkatz-Admin

[kitkatz]

This was Bill's introduction to IHD.com 
http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=2270.msg31612#msg31612


He joined IHD.com on January 8, 2007.
His last post was on October 15, 2018.

[LorinnPKD]

I am so sorry to hear this news.  What a life, and what an inspiration.

I want to be more like Bill.

[Michael Murphy]

He was a inspiration for all ESRD patients,  personally the way he lead his life by simply doing convinced me this cruddy disease should not stand in the way of living the life you want.  He was a star that shot across the heavens of IHD leaving light and wonder behind him.  I hope some where in heaven he has found new canyons to ride.  He will be missed.  God speed Mr. Peckham.

[kristina]

I agree with Michael, Bill was and still is a great ESRF-Survival-Inspiration and it makes me very sad that he is no longer with us. He gave it his all and I respect him very much ! I am sure he also had many struggles, like all of us, but he always sought positive ways forward and most importantly, he never forgot to enjoy himself ! I admired him very much and have learnt a lot from him ! Many thanks Bill from Kristina. 

[kickingandscreaming]

Oh. That feels like a wallop. It always is an eye-opener when one of the "long timers" faces what all of us will face one day. Feels like a big loss.  R.I.P. Bill Peckham.

[cassandra]

Respect Bill!! Nothing more I've had for you than pure respect. Thank you for being here.


   

[Shaks24]

Very sad to hear this. RIP Bill.

[UkrainianTracksuit]

Really saddened to read this. He was an exceptional role model. 

[Simon Dog]

I thought I was doing a good job of dealing with ESRD until I read all that Bill was able to accomplish.  We lost a great person.

[MooseMom]

My stomach hurts reading this.  I'm devastated.  I know he was an inspirational figure, and I, like many of other IHD members, followed his trip through the Grand Canyon.  But right now, at this moment, I'm too upset to focus on the good stuff.

Thank you, kk, for letting us know about this.

[PrimeTimer]

Beginning at approximately 11:41 Eastern Time tonite the moon will dim. They call this a "super wolf blood moon". The dimming will only be for a little while tho and then by tomorrow night, it will be bright again. With the way he lived life and what he taught us, you could say Bill Peckham has shown this to be true.


Our condolences to Bill's friends and family.

[Darthvadar]

One of the great guys!...

He was so good to me during Mum's battle with this disease...

May his gentle soul rest in peace!...

Darth....

[Meinuk]

It seems so alternate reality to see the words "Tribute to Bill Peckham" here on IHD... I guess that even though he was a dialysis superhero/Rock Star, he wasn't indestructible. While living with CKD-5 (he hated the acronym ESRD) he survived epic trips: Burning Man (x3), driving all over the United States, boat trips in the Pacific Northwest, rafting trips down multiple rivers over multiple days, and THEN going dune buggying in the desert, speaking engagements all over the world, countless trips to Washington DC, pyramid climbing in Mexico, and running out of gas on so many highways (seriously, he was the WORST at keeping the tank full) But that was Bill, always burning the candle at both ends, then shooting a game of pool to celebrate.  (See Donald in Mathmagic land, and you will know his secret to always winning at pool https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvceKeHl0Sg). Let's face it, Bill was able to mock "urinators" in all 50 States, and in 32 Countries and 5 continents. (list below)

What a giant to have among us though.  Everything he did was over the top.  He wanted to travel, so he went around the world - checking out dialysis facilities along the way, and in later years, dragging along his trusty NxStage Machine - even down a few rivers.... He wanted wifi in his dialysis unit, so he made it happen.  He wanted the world to be a better place, and he lobbied, spoke, wrote and visited EVERYONE.  Bill even made friends with his detractors - his smile and generosity won over almost everyone he met - political and philosophical opposites couldn't help but like the guy - even if his liberal ways freaked them out.

I have hundreds of thousands of words that I could write about Bill Peckham, but his words are the best.  His passion and his work made this world better for all of us.  His videos demystified dialysis for us, and his sheer determination led us in so many ways.  He is missed, but he will always be cherished - even if he can't be here to blush at the thought of his Rock Star status.  Now we need people to follow in his footsteps.  He blazed the trail, now we have to follow the path.

There will be no new stories, no pictures, and no Skype calls.  Now he has joined the immortals of the internet - gone but never forgotten.

Bill Peckham in his words and voice:

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/billpeckhamDOTcom/

Biography Project (It's a good read!): https://www.billpeckham.com/from_the_sharp_end_of_the/October_1985.html

Kidney Talk Podcasts:

Traveling Around the Globe: Adventures of a Hemodialysis Patient
https://www.rsnhope.org/kidneytalk/traveling-around-the-globe-adventures-of-a-hemodialysis-patient/

Adventure Hunters: Dialyzing in the Grand Canyon
https://www.rsnhope.org/kidneytalk/adventure-hunters-dialyzing-grand-canyontravel-dialysis/

Living the Fullest Life Possible with Kidney Disease – Part One
https://www.rsnhope.org/kidneytalk/living-the-fullest-life-possible-with-kidney-disease-part-one/

Living the Fullest Life Possible with Kidney Disease – Part Two
https://www.rsnhope.org/kidneytalk/living-the-fullest-life-possible-with-kidney-disease-part-two/

IHD Adventures:
The one where Bill and Anna Burn the Man http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=15471.0

Do you want inspiration to get out there?  Here is Bill's list:

[dates and places are NOT up to date - [He is missing a few trips after 2009- he was too busy travelling to update I guess]

32 : countries with general international recognition
•31 member countries of the United Nations(1) (I've dialyzed in 20, on five continents)
•1 country with general international recognition but not UN membership(2)

1 : overseas territory of France, governed as an overseas collective (3)
2 : overseas countries in the Kingdom of the Netherlands (4) (I've dialyzed in 2)
3 : British dependencies (5)
1 : Chinese territory under (temporary) Portuguese administration (6)
 

(1)   USA – Home base Seattle, Washington (Dialysis in over 20 States)
       Canada - multiple; 2006 Dialysis Sydney (aboard Grand Waltz)
       New Zealand - CKD '87; Dialysis Auckland '99
       Australia - CKD '87; Dialysis Freemantle, Sydney, Noosa & Cairns '99
       Nepal - CKD '87
       Thailand - CKD '87
       Mexico - weekend '94; Dialysis Cancun '05
       Costa Rica - Dialysis San Juan '95
       Netherlands - Dialysis: Amsterdam '96, '98, '99; Hilversum '00; Utrecht '03,'04
       Germany - Dialysis: Straubing '96; Dialysis at Sea '98; Trier '02
       Czech Republic - weekend '96
       Italy - weekend '96; Dialysis: Florence & Rome '97
       Switzerland - Dialysis: Lugano & Interlaken '96; Interlaken '02
       France - Dialysis: Dijon & Tassin '96; Marseilles '97; Paris '96, '98, '00, '02; Arles '01
       Austria - weekend '96
       United Kingdom - Dialysis: London '97, '98, '03; Edinburgh '03
       Portugal - weekend '97
       Spain - Dialysis: Seville, Madrid, Barcelona '97; Ibiza '03
       Belgium - Dialysis: Brugge '98; Brussles '04
       Sweden - Dialysis at Sea '98
       Norway - Dialysis at Sea '98
       Finland - Dialysis at Sea '98
       Russia - Dialysis at Sea '98
       Estonia - Dialysis at Sea '98
       Denmark - Dialysis at Sea '98; Dialysis: Copenhagen '04
       Monaco - Dialysis: Monaco '99
       South Africa - Dialysis: Capetown, Port Elizabeth & Nelspruit '99
       Turkey - Dialysis: Kusadasi & Istanbul '00
       Luxembourg - weekend '02
       Bahamas - Dialysis: Centerville '03
       Singapore - Dialysis: Singapore '04
(2)   The Vatican - weekend '97
(3)   Saint Martin - weekend '02
(4)   Sint Maartin - Dialysis Philipsburg '02
       Aruba - Dialysis Oranjestad '07
(5)   Hong Kong - CKD '87
      Cayman Islands - 1989 Post Transplant
      Anguilla - weekend '02
(6)   Macau - CKD '87

[Charlie B53]

If it is one thing I've learned from Bill, it is that he wouldn't want any of us to simply follow in his foot steps.

Bill would want us all to blaze new trails.

Bill was constantly proving that even on Dialysis he could do anything he set his mind to.  The ultimate CAN DO Attitude.

Bill set the example for us all to live by. 

Our Mission is to get out and DO IT, what ever it is you want to do.

Go for it.

Thank Bill.  Your Memory will continue to inspire others to action.

[Paul]

Bill Peckham's biggest contribution to this community was as an example to us all. He did not let a little thing like "being on dialysis" interfere with his life. After I joined this group I read through many of his back posts and life story, I discovered that he started dialysis about twenty years before my major medical problems started (not dialysis, that came later, other stuff happened to me). In those twenty years when he was on dialysis and I was happy, fit and healthy, he was doing more than me. Travelling more. Visiting more places. A man on dialysis having more of a "life" than a reasonably fit (and I think younger) man. He was an example to us all.

I never knew him personally, but his life story has, over the year or so I have been here, made me realise dialysis is not "the first stage of a long sad ending", but can be a continuation of the life I had before, if I work at it. Thank you Bill.

There have been a couple of times in the past year that people have posted to say that  they cannot face dialysis and intend to end their life. Amongst the plethora of replies, someone always told them to look over Bill's old posts. To my knowledge, after that none of them took that final trip. There are probably people alive today who owe their continued existence to Bill's fine example. Thank you Bill.

I still often see posts on this board with people moaning "I can't do that, I am on dialysis" or simply using dialysis as an excuse to not do something. Bill Peckham never did that. And I am sure that for every one person giving up on living a good life, giving up on doing stuff, there are dozens not letting dialysis get them like that. And many of those will be "grabbing life" because of having read Bill's posts. Again: Thank you Bill.

Bill's inspirational thread needs to be made sticky so that new members can read it and not fall into the trap of using dialysis of an excuse to waste their lives. Without the sticky, his posts will just fall down the list of threads and disappear. That would be a tragedy. We may have lost the man, but we do not have to loose his words, his inspiration to those who think dialysis is the end of life. We (the community) need Bill Peckham to be there always.

As I type this I realise that I never thanked Bill for the encouragement his posts gave me when I was feeling down about my life. It is too late now. But even so, one last time "Thank you Bill". You are ("are" not "were") this board's hero.

Farewell to a great man.

[Rerun]

Bill lived life to the fullest I have to hand him that!  I hope we all get what we believe in. 
RIP Bill.   
I found this: https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/bill-peckham-obituary?pid=191347576

The NW Kidney Center is having a memorial on Feb 24, 2019 at 2:00 PM