Cecil Borel
11-12-2005, 01:29 PM
I met Mike Pilato though our informal "triangle wooden boat builders" group several years ago. Through postings and pictures of his grey seal project, I discovered he was an excellant boat builder. He also helped me turn over "Janetess" in Oct '04 (he is wearing the pink shirt at the far right in the group picture, below). I was very surprised and saddened to learn of his death from cancer at the end of August. I found out about his death from his partner Janet Dykes, who has written the following:
It is with a heavy heart that I post this message to the Wooden Boat Forum
and in particular to those of you who followed Mike Pilato's progress
building the Grey Seal. Mike, or "MikeP" as those of you in the Forum knew
him, passed away on August 24, 2005 after a six-year battle with cancer.
Mike began building the Grey Seal in early 2000 a few months after he was
diagnosed with sinus cancer. He suffered several setbacks and debilitating
treatments but building the boat carried him through the good and the bad.
He never waivered in his determination to beat his disease and to finish the
boat. Unfortunately, neither was meant to be.
The last year and a half of his life he was only able to do minimal work on
the boat because of health, personal issues and the fact that the boat was
ten miles away at his former home. To give him a boost, on July 13, 2005,
several of his friends got together and engineered the move of the Grey
Seal, which he hoped to name "Trinity", to his new home. He was a happy man
that day. He was too sick to work on it after July 13, but took comfort in
being able to look out the window and see the fruits of his labor.
I am the executrix of his will and have been charged with the task of
fulfilling his wishes as regards to the boat. He named an organization
where he wanted to donate the boat with the hope it be finished in a
learning environment and one which would uphold a high standard of quality.
That organization turned it down.
Not to be thwarted, since Mike directed that his tools be donated to the
North Carolina Maritime Museum Boat Shop, I then offered the museum not only
the tools, but the boat as well. I was told that "sometimes" they accept
boats. One week later they informed me that yes indeed, they would accept
the donation of Mike's boat along with the tools. Right now we are working
out the logistics of getting the boat and tools to Beaufort, NC (three hours
away) and I hope to have the details worked out within the week.
To all of you who wish to hear of the progress of the boat, I will be happy
to keep you informed. My e-mail address is: jdykes@verizon.net
The link to his obituary is as follows:
http://obit.hallwynne.com/obit_display.cgi?id=248388&listing=Current
Check out a memorable MikeP message thread:
http://www.woodenboat-ubb.com/cgi-bin/UBB/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t
=008430&p=
Sincerely,
Janet Dykes http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid141/p611f4c1927a677505edc9cc4485a5c2b/f6c50e19.jpg
It is with a heavy heart that I post this message to the Wooden Boat Forum
and in particular to those of you who followed Mike Pilato's progress
building the Grey Seal. Mike, or "MikeP" as those of you in the Forum knew
him, passed away on August 24, 2005 after a six-year battle with cancer.
Mike began building the Grey Seal in early 2000 a few months after he was
diagnosed with sinus cancer. He suffered several setbacks and debilitating
treatments but building the boat carried him through the good and the bad.
He never waivered in his determination to beat his disease and to finish the
boat. Unfortunately, neither was meant to be.
The last year and a half of his life he was only able to do minimal work on
the boat because of health, personal issues and the fact that the boat was
ten miles away at his former home. To give him a boost, on July 13, 2005,
several of his friends got together and engineered the move of the Grey
Seal, which he hoped to name "Trinity", to his new home. He was a happy man
that day. He was too sick to work on it after July 13, but took comfort in
being able to look out the window and see the fruits of his labor.
I am the executrix of his will and have been charged with the task of
fulfilling his wishes as regards to the boat. He named an organization
where he wanted to donate the boat with the hope it be finished in a
learning environment and one which would uphold a high standard of quality.
That organization turned it down.
Not to be thwarted, since Mike directed that his tools be donated to the
North Carolina Maritime Museum Boat Shop, I then offered the museum not only
the tools, but the boat as well. I was told that "sometimes" they accept
boats. One week later they informed me that yes indeed, they would accept
the donation of Mike's boat along with the tools. Right now we are working
out the logistics of getting the boat and tools to Beaufort, NC (three hours
away) and I hope to have the details worked out within the week.
To all of you who wish to hear of the progress of the boat, I will be happy
to keep you informed. My e-mail address is: jdykes@verizon.net
The link to his obituary is as follows:
http://obit.hallwynne.com/obit_display.cgi?id=248388&listing=Current
Check out a memorable MikeP message thread:
http://www.woodenboat-ubb.com/cgi-bin/UBB/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t
=008430&p=
Sincerely,
Janet Dykes http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid141/p611f4c1927a677505edc9cc4485a5c2b/f6c50e19.jpg