Eulogy for Sean McGowan delivered by his friend, Jim Drago, on the occasion of
his Memorial Service at St Viator church on Flamingo Rd in Las Vegas, NV.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Good Morning. My name is Jim Drago.
I have been Sean McGowan’s friend for more than 36 years. Of all the things I have been called in my life (and believe me the list is a long one and not all of them would be appropriate here today), there are few that I am prouder of or more honored to be called than Sean McGowan’s good friend.
From our initial encounter as freshmen at the U of A in August 1970, Sean and I hit if off. Over the years we shared many experiences, most of them good and a few of them sad. None, sadder than today. But instead of mourning, I know that Sean would want all of us to celebrate his life and cherish the time that we shared with him.
Sean’s life was a treasure trove of funny stories. He lived life to the fullest. and I could go on for hours with stories about Sean but I can hear him telling me to be quiet and sit down.
When we were in college, Sean decided that he needed a way to get around Tucson so he purchased a used motorcycle. He rode that motorcycle everywhere. One of his favorite pastimes was to ride the bike up Mt. Lemon outside Tucson. The bike had been giving him trouble and was in dire need of repairs. Sean, however, was not interested in paying for such work so when the bike gave out on Mt. Lemon, he abandoned on the side of the road and hitchhiked back to campus.
I saw him later that day and asked what he planned to do. He said he would wait a couple days and then he would drive up to Mt. Lemon to check on the bike. A week passed and went back up the mountain only to find that the bike was gone. The bike hasd been stolen.
I asked Sean if he wanted to file a police report. He said that wasn’t necessary. He said the thieves had been punished enough because now that piece of junk was their problem.
As many of you know Sean learned Hebrew and lived on a kibbutz in the Negev Desert in Israel following his graduation from the U of A. But this was not Sean’s first endeavor into broadening his understanding of other religions. During the summer of our sophomore year in college, Sean took a job selling religious books to Southern Baptists in Albany, Georgia in the heart of the Bible Belt. As the summer was ending, Sean decided to come visit me in New York City and take in a couple Yankee and New York Mets baseball games.
He gave me the date for his arrival and I waited anxiously for his call to pick him up at the airport, train station or bus terminal. Instead, an 18-wheeler pulled up in front of my family’s home in Queens at 10 p.m. and out jumped Sean. He decided he could save some money by hitchhiking to New York and was picked up by a moving van. I asked what the trip cost. He said nothing, except he had to help unload furniture at two houses.
Sean had a heart of gold and really was a romantic at heart. Long after our school days and firmly established as an attorney here in Nevada, Sean and I had an opportunity to get together with a few of our old college friends including Jim Craft. Jim Craft or Crafty as we all called him, was a successful attorney in Washington D.C. While Sean and rest of us had more Democratic and liberal political leanings, Crafty was a button-downed, rock-ribbed Republican. Cautious to a fault, Crafty was forever analyzing the proper course of action especially when it came to his female friends.
Crafty told us that he had met this very nice woman named Dawn who was a school teacher in the D.C. area and that he was very taken with her. He wanted to let her know he was thinking of her while he was in Nevada, but was unsure just how to do it. Step in Sean to the rescue. Sean suggested that Crafty send Dawn some flowers from Nevada.
Crafty being forever cautious thought it was a good idea but was undecided about what type and how many flowers he should send, fearful of conveying the wrong message. Crafty suggested two roses and Sean told him that Crafty would look cheap and uninterested. Sean suggested a dozen red roses, but Crafty responded that 12 red roses would surely suggest marriage. Sean being the great negotiator he was suggested a dozen red and white roses to demonstrate sufficient interest but not a walk down the aisle. Sufficiently reassured, Sean then dialed the phone to FTD so Crafty could place the order.
A couple weeks later Sean called me and told me that Crafty and Dawn were engaged.
Sean and I shared a deep passion for Arizona basketball. Over the years, we would anxiously follow each Arizona game. When Arizona would make its annual trip to the NCAA tournament, Sean and I would pool our money and place a wager on the game.
But Sean insisted that we not wager on Arizona. He said that would surely doom their chances. Instead, we would wager on the UofA’s opponent. I thought why we would do that. Either way I’d be rooting against myself. Sean persisted. He said by doing it his way if Arizona won, we would be happy. If the U of A lost or failed to cover the spread, we could always lick our wounds with our winnings. What an argument! It was so stupid it made sense. So for the last 20 years that what we did.
In closing, I am reminded about something my Dad told me when my mother died while I was in college. He said the greatest legacy a person could leave is the positive influence that they had on the people they touched throughout their life. I’d say Sean’s report card is an A-plus.
God Bless you Sean, my good friend.
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