Over the decades, we grew closer as friends. After discovering that my wife, Helen, and I share the same wedding anniversary with he and his late wife, Sue, we never missed the chance to celebrate the date together. Also an annual affair, he and Sue graciously hosted a group of birders every year on their big, beautiful boat, "The Sporty Pelican," enabling us to canvas Biscayne Bay and Fisher Island in style for the Miami Christmas Bird Count.