First let me say that he was my close friend ever since the first week of high school, when I met him as part of a group of kids that all hung around together from a neighborhood across town from where I lived in Sudbury MA. They were "neighborhood" as we say here in MA, and everyone had a nickname. Ed Connors, ring-leader of the "neighborhood" nicknamed Todd early "DOINKER" and it stuck. Later on it morphed to The Doink of Earl which he will fondly be remembered as for ever. Doink loved fishing, he always had, even before the formative years of high school when he would scout out remote ponds and lost places, many on private property, to cast a line in and see what was lurking. The best thing about going with Todd was when you went with him, you weren't just fishing, you were catching !
Loosing Todd this spring means that as a Captain trying to cover costs and maybe make a couple bucks while having a great time taking people fishing just got a whole lot harder. It means I no longer have to worry just about the boat and her equipment being top notch and squared away, it means that I now need to also worry about gear, tackle, rods and reels, ice and a whole bevy more of "things" to make sure the trip goes right - before all I had to say to Todd was "Are you all set" and he'd say "Yup, I got .....". That's when he'd rattle off a list of what he was bringing. It would always end with "what time you want me there" and whatever the time was, he'd reply "Got it" and restate the time a half hour earlier - that was the Doink of Earl when it came time to go fishing.
I've got too many stories of adventures that we had, both on and off the water, to share in this tribute to him, but I will hold those close in my memories every time I step aboard the boat in the seasons to come. I know he made an impression on every single customer of 3Play Charters that had the chance to see him work the back deck and listen to his constant ramble of whatever it was he was talking about. I miss my friend, I'm so sorry he is gone, I wish I could have helped him live longer.
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