Craig Allen, RIP

A business blog may not be the best forum for this, but I don’t have another outlet.

A dear friend from my days at New College, Craig Allen, died on Saturday, 17 November 2007. There will not be a funeral, at the behest of his family.

Craig was an extraordinarily gifted individual, painfully intelligent with an incredibly caustic wit—best when turned on someone else. He greatly enjoyed music & movies, but his dearest loves were his two children, whom he idolised.

He worked as a lawyer for the National Science Foundation investigating fraud & criminal activity. While working there he developed two rare illnesses, neurosarcoidosis & pulmonary sarcoidosis. The struggle against these put an intolerable strain on him & his marriage, more so because he was inaccurately diagnosed for a considerable period of time. While fighting the pain of these illnesses, he became addicted to a cocktail of drugs.

He was fighting his addiction & was trying to pick up the pieces of his life in Florida when he lost his battle. My last message from him was written the day before he died. He was upbeat, more so than I have heard in a long time.

He leaves behind his two children, Gabriel & Jackson. He was 36 years old. He was a dear friend.