A small tribute from Bobby's past, headed to the stars

Cheryl Platz, 2023-05-05

My name is Cheryl Platz, and I'm a face from your [Bob's parents'] late son Bobby's distant past. I don't know if we ever got the chance to meet when I was attending Edgewood with your son years ago, but I still remember him. Bobby was part of our little gifted circle, and part of the recess misfit group the Edgewood Entertainers, who spent our recesses writing plays based on our favorite books (definitely out of a pure love of writing and not at all a thinly veiled plot to avoid physical activity.)

I have always fondly remembered one of our productions in particular - a parody of Star Trek: The Next Generation that we did in I believe Mrs. Bartels' class. It was probably our only video production. I don't remember the whole plot, but I DO remember our replicator gag- an upturned box with a slot cut in it, and a kid with a cream pie inside. You can imagine the rest. (I think Bobby actually had the only copy of that tape in existence.) I think about this fondly as one of the peaks of our young nerd development. Of course, eventually life pulled us in different directions, with Bobby pulled to Laurenceville, and then Stanford. I remember hearing about Bobby's passing after the memorial and being deeply shaken, as it was certainly the first time in my life someone I'd known at that level had passed on. For that reason and others, he still crosses my mind. (It looks like he dropped "Bobby" for more adult phrasings, but my memories of him will always be frozen a little earlier in time.

I'm writing because I thought it might, possibly, bring you a little joy to know that ephemeral moment in Mrs. Bartels' class is living on. Because life is stranger than fiction, I'm hosting/Toastmaster for the Nebula Awards from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association this year. (I'm still a little in shock about this, honestly, given that Isaac Asimov was their first Toastmaster.) I used Star Trek as a theme for my monologue, and I mention the Edgewood Entertainers and that replicator gag in my speech - both as a lighthearted moment and as an example of how science fiction can inspire us at any age. The fingerprint of that experience, at least, will live on in the Nebula archives. The broadcast is free live on Sunday May 14 at 8PM, I think on the YouTube for the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, but the recording will be available after. Of course, there's no need for you to watch it. I just wanted you to know your son is not forgotten. And I treasure those memories of the time we all spent together - friendship for kids like us so dedicated to our studies seemed hard to come by at times.

I found you by searching for Bobby, thinking it would be a lost cause - and stumbling upon your poignant website. Thank you for sharing your heartfelt words and the memories of others - it was a welcome moment of closure after many years.