It is another Ubuntu Community Appreciation Day already and although it’s hard to pick just one person, and I’ve worked with many great people and I admire many for what they do and who they are, today I will mention one person I’ve enjoyed working with a lot. To everybody else: you know there’s always enough hugs for you where I am. :-)
Andrew has helped out in many unnoticed places, never claimed much credit and never stood much in the limelight. Andrew, whose last name is pronounced in many different ways (ranging from ‘Starr-Bow-chick-a-wow-wow’ to ‘Something’) has the talent of turning up unexpectedly, picking up some of the hard problems and leaving a fix for it behind. Maybe it’s because our timezones only overlap somewhat and he’s only occassionally on IRC, I often woke up, looked at my inbox and felt like I just found a present in there.
Andrew has been involved in NGOs working in his local area and mailed me after a short absence that he had been busy helping out on the south shore of Staten Island after the hurricane hit. He also became a MOTU and helped out in many teams I’m involved in as well (Dev Advisory Team, Packaging Guide editors, the early NGO team, etc.)
It’s a pleasure to work with Andrew, he’s relaxed, he knows his stuff, he helps with the hard and unrewarding stuff in the beginning to give others the breathing room and open up the field and he has his heart in the right place.
Thanks a lot for your hard work Andrew, it’s much appreciated!
Big hugs to you and everyone else who make the Ubuntu, Open Source and general world a better place. You all rock!