It came as a shock to us on Sunday evening to learn from the RCMP in Alert Bay that our dear friend Martin (Kurt) Musgrove had died that afternoon in Vancouver. He had been found bleeding in the basement of his house at around 6am and was rushed to hospital, where he died at 2pm. There was a trail of blood on the pavement in front of his house, so our first thought was that he had been attacked while outside. It now seems that the blood was unrelated to Kurt, so it remains a mystery. The police are asking the public to help identify the blood. We do not yet know what their conclusions are about Kurt’s injuries and death, but hope to know more soon and will post what we learn here. For the moment, we just want to share this incredibly sad news, so the many friends Kurt has made at OrcaLab over the past 30 years will know, and be able to remember him with us.
Everywhere we look around OrcaLab, we see Kurt. He built and rebuilt most of the buildings, walkways and decks, replacing wood as it rotted and adding little touches that made everything here unique. As we think about him, we remember small moments and big ones, like the look of pleasure that came over the face of a departing assistant or visitor when he presented them with a gift of a perfect little wooden mushroom; and the way he sat in the house looking out, saying “there’s one” when he was harvesting rocks off the beach to build the great pile the bathhouse tub sits on; it will still be here a thousand years from now, long after everything else has gone. Ah Kurt, without you we would not exist, certainly not in the form you have given us.
We will add to this as we learn more, and invite everyone who knew Kurt to post some of their memories here, or send them to us via email to [email protected]. Photos of Kurt will be very welcome too.
Posted with great sadness,
Paul & Helena
March 11, 2014
March 16 2014
Yesterday, we heard from the police in Vancouver that Kurt died from a head injury that happened when he fell. The circumstances aren’t clear, but we felt better knowing that he probably didn’t suffer very much after the injury, as he would have lost consciousness almost immediately. Our fear had been that he had been attacked by an intruder and suffered for a long time before he was taken to the hospital. We now know that this wasn’t what happened, and though it doesn’t alter the fact that Kurt has died, it does help us feel a bit better.
