Dirk Koning was, as George Stoney has pointed out, a mighty oak, a dear
friend and an inspirational leader.  Dirk passed away on Thursday as the
result of complications from a heart procedure.  He founded and was
director of the Grand Rapids Community Media Center for twenty five
years: a fact hard to believe when you realize that he was only 48 when
he died.  Dirk was one of the first persons in public access to perceive
the necessity of expanding his center to include computer access and
more recently radio.  His center was the gem of our network of access
centers, frequently visited by people from all over the world who sought
to see first hand what could happen when communication tools are made
available to everyone in the community.

Dirk was a gentle giant, persuasive and beneficent, but always clear
headed and with a determined will to  create a just and equatable
world.  For Dirk, community media was an essential ingredient in both
democracy and daily life.  To illustrate this, GRMC minted their own
currancy, large silver coins incribed with the words of Thomas
Jefferson: "Communication is the currancy of democracy."  These coins,
initially designed to facilitate the bartering of services at the center
(i.e. one could trade four hours of editing time for the labor of a
skilled camera person), soon became a sort of neighborhood exchange: one
could buy pizza with them or xerox copies of a poster.  To me that coin
project was quintessential Dirk.  Pushing us all to think about the
economic value of information and self expression, and creating a
community of participants in a bold yet playful experiment.

We are stunned and heart broken, not only missing a dear friend, but
knowing deeply how much he was needed for the battles ahead.

This is the beginning of the Chinese new year-- the year of the
rooster.  A wake up call for all of us to continue the struggle for
democratic communication.  We know that the many young people he
mentored and inspired will carry his vision forward.
DeeDee