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In Memoriam: Geoff Hartman
MERIP grieves the loss of Geoff Hartman, 42, a former editor of
this magazine and our great friend. Geoff died on June 7, 2007
of complications resulting from cancer.
Geoff was
born in California but spent much of his youth in Shag Harbor,
Nova Scotia. He obtained B.A. and M.A. degrees from, respectively,
Berkshire College in Lenox, Massachusetts and Westminster Theological
Seminary in Philadelphia in ancient languages and textual criticism.
He completed doctoral coursework in 1993 at Hebrew University in
Jerusalem, specializing in the Dead Sea Scrolls and other ancient
texts. His languages included Hebrew, Arabic and ancient Aramaic
and Syriac. While living in Jerusalem, Geoff also became a student
of contemporary Israel-Palestine and worked for the Alternative
Information Center, publishers of News from Within.
He was editor of Middle East Report from mid-1995 to 1998.
After leaving MERIP’s employ, Geoff continued as a contributing
editor and volunteer consultant and graphic designer. He designed
the covers of the magazine from late 2001 until just before his
death.
From 1998 to 2003, Geoff worked with various independent government
contractors as a publications, information management, graphic
design and web specialist, principally at NASA. He formally joined
NASA in 2003 as a proposal development specialist. He and his printing
and design team received numerous awards for technical excellence
and customer service.
During his years at NASA, Geoff also managed his own consulting
business and produced a variety of publications, monographs, brochures,
advertisements, newsletters and posters for such clients as New
York University, Georgetown University, Greenpeace USA, Washington’s
Whitman-Walker Clinic and the Coalition for Smarter Growth. His
advertising artwork has appeared in numerous newspapers and magazines.
As he (almost always) did for MERIP, Geoff frequently donated his
tremendous talents to non-profit organizations.
Geoff was a committed activist for progressive political causes
and a volunteer in service to the Washington, DC gay community.
He served as web coordinator for the US Campaign to End the Israeli
Occupation, which honored his contributions at its June 10 rally
in Washington, and the DC Mobilization Coordinator for United for
Peace and Justice. He also gave generously of his time for many
years as a volunteer HIV-AIDS counselor at the Whitman-Walker Clinic
and was honored in 2005 as the recipient of its Gene Frey Volunteer
Service Award for outstanding volunteer service.
Survivors include his partner of eight years, Joseph Kakesh, his
mother, Gertrude Amos, and other family members in Nova Scotia.
Geoff’s many close friends and colleagues will greatly miss him
and remember the example he set of a principled life exuberantly
lived, his generous and inclusive spirit, his warmth as a host
and his extraordinary skills as a gardener, chef and mixologist.
—Bruce Dunne
A memorial service for Geoff was held on June 17 in Washington,
DC. Here are some of the remembrances that were shared there
and subsequently:
One of my first memories of Geoff is of a gathering of activists
in the basement of the Jerusalem Hotel. I was new in Jerusalem
and didn’t know most of the folks in the room. I found myself sitting
next to Geoff, who took it upon himself to fill me in on the people
present and provide his assessment of them. This was whispered
to me at a high decibel level and gave me insight into the various
characters on the scene, not least of all Geoff himself, who seemed
to move comfortably in this unusual niche.
I also remember Geoff and others pulling all-nighters as he laid
out News from Within by hand, meticulously pasting the magazine
together, and working into a into giggling stupor as the night
wore on. He and [editor] Tikva [Honig-Parnass] would share cigarettes
and Geoff would gossip in his impressive Hebrew.
—Shira Katz
Geoff was one of the first friends I made when I arrived in Jerusalem
in 1994. His apartment in the Old City was a meeting place of all
sorts of people, and it was there that I met and made many friends
and colleagues. Geoff opened his house to me many times when I
was lonely, offering nice cooking, nighttime walks around the Old
City and, of course, fun and lively conversation about politics,
people and life in Jerusalem.
—Allegra Pacheco
I remember how concerned Geoff always was about his neighbors
in the Old City and how he was always trying to help people with
their problems. Whether it was trouble paying the rent, a son who
had been arrested by the army or a shattered love affair, Geoff
was always there for people.
—Max Boehnel
Geoff helped me to feel comfortable in unfamiliar territory, because
he himself was so out there—even before he was “out”—with his needs
and his personality, with his hospitality, with his strangeness
to the Middle East and his familiarity with it, with his complaints,
his politics, his high-pitched banter in Hebrew, Arabic and English.
He made himself a focal point—a loud, friendly focal point—and
this put me at ease.
—Jessi Roemer
Once I had to interview a very right-wing Israeli military judge
and Geoff, with his excellent Hebrew, offered to serve as my translator.
The judge’s anti-Arab rhetoric was extreme, and as Geoff was translating,
his face was contorting and he looked like he was going to be sick,
repulsed by the words coming out of his mouth. The look in his
eyes was, “Oh, my God.” We had barely left the guy’s office before
Geoff began howling. It was one of those rare political moments
when you and a good friend are in enemy territory, doing reconnaissance.
Of course, I’ll always remember his language skills. There’s
nothing like hearing someone soliloquize in Aramaic at a drunken
party.
—Lisa Hajjar
Like Lisa, many of my memories of Geoff from the Jerusalem years
are rooted in his sardonic humor. It will come as no surprise that
he took particular pleasure in thumbing his nose at various authorities
and institutions, and that he did so with considerable drama and
flair. Those who knew him, and who visited his cramped and airless
apartment in the Old City, will recall the small dog that he adopted—or
that had adopted Geoff—and that he irreverently named Suha after
the wife of Yasser Arafat. He had particular joy calling out her
name in the narrow streets of the Old City, watching the surprise
and, sometimes, the horror on the faces of his neighbors. His humor
could be quite biting and impertinent, but it was always rooted
in a cogent critique of the Israeli and Middle Eastern political
landscape. Geoff encouraged all of us to do politics with both
bravery and humor, to see both the tragic and the absurd in the
political scene. We’ll miss him.
—Rebecca Stein
I worked—as assistant editor—with Geoff in 1997 and 1998, during
his last year at MERIP. For me, it was nothing less than an incredible
experience. Geoff truly excelled in all phases of the production
process and was absolutely dedicated to Middle East Report.
I remember him telling stories from previous years when he did
the entire magazine on his own. On one occasion, the MERIP office
was flooded in the final stages of laying out the magazine before
sending it to the printer. He, along with office manager Beth Golatzki,
recounted how they had to scurry around, pulling up wires and power
strips and hanging them on the walls so they would remain dry and
he could keep working. But, even when acts of god didn’t intrude,
MERIP’s computers did not have the speed or memory to really do
the job correctly. As a result, Geoff routinely stayed up all night
when deadlines were approaching to get the magazine out on time.
I’ll always remember Geoff as a truly unique and special individual.
He was sensitive, brilliant in every sense of the word, and had
huge reserves of energy and humor. Geoff treated co-workers as
intimate friends. To work with him was to share his life and to
share yours with him. Working with Geoff was also like stepping
into a different world, where things moved at twice their ordinary
speed, colors were sharper than usual and nothing was mundane.
Rest in peace, my friend.
—Dan Sisken
On behalf of the Whitman-Walker Clinic, I want to express our
gratitude to Geoff by recalling the incredible gifts he gave to
the GLBT community during his seven years of volunteer service.
Beginning in 1999, Geoff was a volunteer counselor for HIV T&C
in the Gay Men’s Health Clinic; in that role, Geoff brought his
natural gift for human connection and compassion to clients who
were particularly vulnerable—worried and afraid. Geoff could provide
reassurance, comfort, optimism and, when appropriate, a touch of
levity to this most challenging life situation. Geoff also spent
time doing HIV outreach and education for the clinic—through a
program that required volunteers to go out to venues frequented
by gay men (how hard that must have been!) to hand out condoms
and talk about playing it safe. I don’t know about you, but if
I imagine Geoff approaching me in a bar, looking me right in the
eye and giving me a gentle talking-to about safe sex, I think I’d
be sold.
Geoff also brought his tremendous artistic talent to Whitman-Walker.
When I met Geoff in 1999 he had been doing the graphic design work
for Schwartz Housing, and my colleague, Christine, recommended
that I call Geoff regarding a need I had for some graphic design
for Lesbian Services. I had always found it a bit difficult to
ask volunteers to do work—knowing that they were already giving
a lot of time—so I hesitated to call. Christine encouraged me—“he’s
great,” she said—so I reached out to Geoff, and I’m so glad I did.
Geoff responded with such enthusiasm, and in no time he literally
transformed the look of Lesbian Services newsletters, brochures,
ads, invitations, program books—everything. He was so easygoing
about the work, he never (or, should I say, rarely) complained
and he maintained a professional commitment to producing the best
possible final product. For over five years, Geoff hung in there
with Lesbian Services, graciously tolerating our limited knowledge
of design and production, our demanding timelines and the unpredictable
PMS-related mood “issues” one can only expect from working with
a women’s program. He would often remind me that he was not one
of those “self-absorbed, pissy queen types,” which made it easier
for me to ask him to move a comma, change the typeface or make
my hair look better.
In 2005, Geoff was given the highest honor available to Whitman-Walker
volunteers—the Gene Frey Award. It was very important to me and
the Lesbian Services team that Geoff be honored, and we were ecstatic
when his nomination was approved. In retrospect, however, it is
clear that for Geoff, the reward for his altruistic volunteerism
came in the actual doing. He was clearly uncomfortable with the
idea of being publicly acknowledged and did not particularly want
to endure an awards ceremony, but for us, he stepped up, put on
a tie and accepted the award with pride. This was yet another example
of Geoff’s unselfish spirit.
Geoff’s commitment to Lesbian Services was driven by his belief
that gay men needed to show their appreciation to and solidarity
with lesbians for all of their work in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
He was giving back—and he made that clear. In that way, Geoff was
unique among the gay men I knew, and stood out to me as a true
bridge builder, someone who understood that all of us had struggles
and would do better by joining forces. Geoff was truly a feminist,
and in fact I would often tell him that he was a “better,” more
righteous lesbian-feminist than me. He certainly had a better lesbian
wardrobe than me. Whether or not we agree on who the “real” lesbian
is, what I can tell you for sure is that Geoff was a true humanitarian—a
rare gem—who did everything within his means to give to others.
Geoff’s spirit will always be with me, and I know I speak for the
entire Whitman-Walker community when I say, “Geoff, thank you for
everything. We will miss you.”
—Ellen Kahn
Geoff had a family in Canada, a family in Washington and, of course,
a family at NASA. Like all families we laughed, and we argued,
but most of all, we loved Geoff.
We at NASA first met Geoff back in 2001, when he supported our
office temporarily in developing three science mission proposals.
Immediately, we knew we had found a real gem with talent and creativity,
so whenever we needed help, we called Geoff. He returned over the
next several years to work on the Advanced Compton Telescope Vision
Mission proposal and the EPIC mission proposal to look for Earth-like
planets. Geoff was proud to work for NASA and loved the work that
he was so gifted at.
Then, in 2005, Geoff officially joined NASA as a full-time civil
servant and was officially adopted into our family. He was so excited
about being a NASA civil servant and very conscientious about every
detail. Geoff brought a new enthusiasm and energy into the job
and quickly gained the respect of all the scientists and engineers
whose paths he crossed.
The list of Geoff’s most significant contributions to NASA includes
the proposals he produced for a Lunar Explorer Mission, the MOSAIC
mission to Mars, the MISITI instrument that will determine the
response of Earth’s ionosphere and thermosphere to geomagnetic
storms and a mission to study dark energy, to name a few. The last
project Geoff started was the OSIRIS—an asteroid sample return
mission.
Geoff was so passionate about his work that he was contributing
to the proposal as late as the week before he died. Geoff was even
planning to get Internet access in the intensive care unit. He
worked as many hours as it took to publish the perfect proposal.
His work was accurate, stylish and professional. He never hesitated
to share his vast knowledge of software, and always took the time
to sit with others and teach them little tips or tricks that made
their jobs easier.
Geoff was the guy who you wanted to visit in the morning because
he would offer you a freshly brewed cup of gourmet coffee. He was
the guy who loved to chat about everything under the sun over the
coffee. And tempted our taste buds with delectable homemade brownies
and cookies. He even used these brownies to bribe his proposal
teams to finish their work.
He was the guy who taped TV shows for those of us who are forgetful
or technically challenged. He gave you the evil eye when you said
something he didn’t want to hear, and gave you that smirk when
you said something that was probably stupid. And who could forget
the eye roll….
Geoff was the guy who got lost on the way to work, and some days
he got really lost on the way to work. He was the guy whose intellect
was beyond his pay grade, and worried about the small stuff even
when he was sick. He was the NASA meatball police—a stickler for
following the style guide.
He researched everything. He was the ultimate consumer.
He never failed to support a customer to the fullest. He was forced
to deal with those who couldn’t spell customer service. And we
knew all about it.
Geoff was the guy who expected perfection from himself and pushed
everyone to the limits he knew they were capable of. He challenged
us to do things better and think differently. He helped us to grow
as an office.
Because of Geoff, in many ways we are more aware of problems in
the world. We are better colleagues for encouraging him, valuing
his contributions and loving who he was. We are better people for
having Geoff in our lives. We will always miss him.
—Bonnie Norris
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