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PLEASE MEET SCOTTY:

It is with such sadness I am writing to tell you that our very dear friend Scotty Ferguson has passed away. There is so much to this beautiful man I honestly don't know where to begin. I first met him at his home, which at the time was a covered bench along the ship canal in Fremont. It was the winter of 2011. His friend Dinkus was living there too.

Both Scotty and Dinkus had an undeniable twinkle in their eye, it drew them together, feeding off each other's charisma. They were so alive, now they are both gone. Dinkus passed in early 2017 which hit Scotty hard. Everyone that frequented the bench could see they were a team. Scotty played the guitar and Dinkus sang off-key, Dinkus told jokes and Scotty gave that infectious laugh. And through it all, they drank, and drank.

Scotty's charm was second only to his big heart. He was a good man that would do anything for you. I felt this constantly in my friendship with him. I know the people at the University Methodist Church felt this too, he volunteered lots. Gail Winberg from the church, along with many others, is feeling the painful loss of his friendship.

Scotty's life was in a downward spiral during that time living on the bench. It was horrible to witness his daily struggle. All of that changed when he met Anne. She pulled him out of it with her goodness and love. Often when I was in the office, working early, I would see Anne's car pull up, just when it was getting light, and she'd walk down those steps to visit with Scotty.

Eventually she broke through. He quit drinking and they moved in together. It was beautiful. They were there for each other, both learning and growing. In the end, the obstacles were too much and they separated but their love kept them close, texting daily till the end. It was Anne that told me Scotty had passed on February 5th of cancer. Please send your LOVE to her, I know she is hurting deeply with this loss.

Scotty loved to fish. Often he and Dinkus would fish along the canal. During Dinkus' last year outside he was in a wheelchair and somebody had thrown it into the canal, coming to rest about 10' out and 5' down. You could see it when the water was still. Scotty decided to fish for it. It was a big deal, he spent hours trying to catch it and finally did, slowly pulling it to the surface and onto land. There was a celebration like you'd never seen. Scotty talked about the big one he caught, over and over, asking if we'd heard the story yet. Still makes me smile so much.

We loveLOVE you Scotty. At 60 years old, with so much life in you, you were much too young to leave us. Thank you for your beautiful friendship, for the LOVE of life you shared so very easily with everyone.

Fremont Neighborhood | Rex

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