Wes Skiles was a huge influence in my career and personal life. Sadly he died prematurely in a diving accident in July 2010. Offering a eulogy at his memorial service was one of the toughest things I have ever had to do. Hundreds of people gathered by the water of Ginnie Springs celebrating his life, but we all mourned the man we had lost. As I choked back tears, I offered these words to our community:
Wes was one of the great catalysts in our diving family. I have no doubt that many people have had their most exciting, most frightening, wild, fulfilling times in life with Wes. He was the spark that set creativity afire, that ignited the child in all of us. He was a teacher, from a family of teachers. He mentored and nurtured almost every day of his life. He loved getting people started in anything… gave us encouragement, told us to dream the impossible and go get whatever makes us whole.
Many have heard him sing at the top of his lungs, holler in wild abandon as he held a lit firework in the air or watched him drag another branch on the fire until it lit the trees ablaze, shoot a pistol, conjure up a homemade explosive, run with scissors, play with fire. But as big as you remember him, he was also gentle and simple. There was nothing more important to Wes in the grand scheme of life than his family. And he brought all of us into that too. We’ve held hands in prayer at Thanksgiving feasts, watched him struggle with his mortality as he buried his friends, seen him rush home, eager to take Tessa or Nate to a game. I recall one particular job, we took 10-year-old Tessa along so I could certify her as an open water diver. She lost a baby tooth that day and Wes made sure I would slip something under her pillow from the tooth fairy. It was really important to him. He wanted her to live in the world of simple imagination as long as possible. “And take the tooth, he said,” instructions to a woman without a child of her own. My young roommate Tessa – at once young and innocent, also holding my hand in great wisdom when I learned of my Mother’s cancer that night.
And that’s Wes… bravado, skill, creativity yet also innocence, simplicity, and desiring to live in the world of imagination and dreams of possibilities.
Explorer
Teacher
Mentor
Activist
Advocate
Mediator
Leader
Yes, but also husband to life long love Terri. Proud father to his two wonderful children Nate and Tess. Brother to Jimbo and Shirley.
And something to every one of us here today.
How can you process and imagine a world without Wes. It leaves a hole greater than we can imagine. But I’m pretty sure I know what Wes would want.
In his memory protect our springs with every ounce of passion and energy he had. Reach out to somebody and inspire them to create and explore. Live like nothing in the world is impossible.
If you want to learn more about Wes and our work together, please read Into The Planet, a riveting account of one of the most dangerous yet exhilarating pursuits in the world. With gripping storytelling, and radiating with intimacy, my book will transport you deep into the most exquisite, untouched corners of the earth, where fear must be reconciled and the innermost parts of the human condition are revealed. It will be available in bookstores everywhere on August 27, 2019.
