I am so sorry that I only now learned of Roger's death! I never knew Roger personally but came to understand his expertise about koalas upon our son's death nearly 22 years ago! I learned at Daniel's funeral, from other middle schoolers who had shared his carpool, that, during a recent conversation dealing with the animals the boys would wish to return after their deaths (ie, per reincarnation, I gather), Daniel had indicated his desire to sleep through eternity and thus he wished to come back as a koala! Hearing that, I promptly adopted the koala as Daniel's "spirit animal". Our condo looks like a shrine to koalas: we have plush toy koalas, embroidered and needlepointed images of koalas, koala jewelry, t-shirts featuring koalas, porcelain and crystal koalas - I even have 2 pairs of shoes featuring pictures of koalas! About 15 years ago, my mother, husband and I spent a wonderful 3 weeks in Australia, during which we visited a koala sanctuary and I was able to hold a koala at Steve Irwin's zoo. I have donated to the Australian Koala Foundation in Daniel's memory and continue to search out products and information about koalas, which is how I came to learn about Roger, and admire his knowledge and photography. Maybe he and Daniel have managed to connect in the world-to-come! I send my belated condolences to Roger's family and hope that memories of Roger bring them comfort.
Opal Rosenfeld (Minnesota, USA)
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