Richard Meeker

At the memorial for Julie, one of the family members mentioned a telling comment she made. It was to this effect: You think you're the central character in a novel. But no one's reading. The gist: Don't take yourself all that seriously.
Though I'd known Julie as a casual acquaintance, that view of hers was what brought us together. Here's how: In the 1990s, or so I recall, the Business Journal wrote a story about Willamette Week on the occasion of one of its birthdays. The usual suspects were quoted. But then there was Julie (what was she doing in this profile, anyway?), saying of my business partner Mark Zusman and me, "Those guys take themselves way too seriously." Thanks to the memorial, I now know a little more clearly what she was saying about us. At the time, I was just puzzled. So I called. "What have we done to get you on our case?" I asked. With that began more of a relationship that really solidified when Julie took over College Possible and it was featured in Willamette Week's Give!Guide. I marveled at what she did for that organization, as for several others. As to what got us started down this path: She was right. Of course.