I met Bob

Camping on his 60th

I met Bob Frey in January of 1979. He was riding a bicycle with a young person (his very young son) strapped in a carrier. I joined the Oakland Food Collective soon thereafter and many of the OFC administrative duties were completed at Bob Frey’s house. In the 33 years I knew Bob Frey there were some constants, among them; alternative energy, locally produced produce, sustainable business practices, computer innovations used for public good, solidary with oppressed people. However, as a neighbor, a friend and a sometime fellow critic of government policies, I never knew Bob Frey to be disrespectful to women, a drunkard, or an abuser of drugs. I recall talks with Bob Frey in which we spoke about acquaintances that had one or all of these problems and Bob neither was that person nor did he want to be that person. He was a sincere upright individual who was an asset to our neighborhood, state, country and world who retired to the Mexico he knew well and loved.

Ed Cullen
Oakland, CA