David W. Deerfield II

Photo by David Deerfield. Rincon Beach, Puerto Rico

I am deeply saddened by the news. I kept hoping against hope that David would pull through. As you say, that his fighting spirit would see him through the last episode one more time. I had hoped to see him getting better in July, to plan new stuff that would continue our collaborations, hopefully for many years. But I also could see the beginning of the end in the last posting on the blog. It was obvious that his lungs were failing fast. He had already outlived by several months the life expectancy of people with his type of cancer. At least he got to be at home and at peace with himself, and with family and friends that truly cared for him. I know that it is not a great consolation but it is an important one for his family and friends. I am glad that he was able to spend some time in Rincón in one of the prettiest places in the Caribbean. I know he enjoyed this greatly.

I am deeply grateful to David, for he gave me an opportunity to get back into research after a period where it appeared it was at an end for me here in PR. His friendship was one of the bright spots of my life, personal and professional, over the last few years. His commitment to getting HPC and biocomputing to minority schools was also a great example of what a kind of a person he was. Hopefully, we can continue this work as part of David's legacy to all of us and to society. I know I will try to go on with it. I will miss him, with his wonderful sense of humor, immensely. He helped me become a better scientist and a better human being, and for that I will always be grateful.

Again, I will miss him greatly.