Dear Editor,
Gary Oliver modeled for so many of us what being a good human being looks like in practice. He seemed to easily integrate his deeply-held concerns for the well being of others, our related species, and the planet as a whole throughout his personal interactions, community initiatives, and broader political identity and practice. He was a border walker, a pathfinder, a bridge builder as well as a skilled musician and unique+witty cartoonist. In even his simple weekly habits, I found, as a long-time friend and one-time housemate, someone who challenged and encouraged me to deepen my appreciation for simple things and always return the needs of others to center of frame. My neglected years-long desire to return to the Big Bend was always, I see now, largely an expression of my desire to rekindle that friendship. Well, Bub. I slept too long on that. I will miss you.
Greg Harman
San Antonio
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To the Editor,
Gary Oliver was a monument in his own quiet way. We always admired his prospect as both a public servant and an artist/provocateur.
Lynn and I first met Gary at his house in 1997 through an introduction from mutual friends. His eyesight even then wasn’t great and he was trying to renovate his house. Some fellow from Russia was there –– likely as a boarder –– laying flagstones for a future walkway in the pouring rain. Gary had a love interest at the time who lived in Vermont and he would regularly take the Greyhound bus to see her –– some 15-20 hours away. We appreciated his creativity, open-mindedness and sense of adventure.
Gary was one of the initial bright lights of Marfa that made us fall in love with the place. A wonderful human being who worked selflessly for the local community, combined with expressing weekly concerns, reminding us that we are also citizens of a much larger world –– the new one that we are all a part of.
Evan Hughes and Lynn McCary
New York City
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Dear Editor,
I am saddened to learn of the passing of Gary Oliver, long-time political cartoonist for The Big Bend Sentinel. Gary was an extremely talented person with a gift for many things. His life touched many, both human and animal. His shoes will be hard to fill! Marfa and The Big Bend Sentinel will not be the same without Gary Oliver.
Respectfully,
Joy Scott
Van Horn
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So … Gary Oliver … a great heart (he felt everything we all feel and then some), a great mind (he knew everything important and eager to learn more), a great sense of humor (always finding something hopeful or inspiring) … just a great human being, an example of a life well lived. Todos somos golliver …
Richard Simpson
Marfa
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In Memoriam to Gary Oliver:
In 2012 I moved to Marfa and had the incredibly good fortune to become Gary’s neighbor. I knew right away that he was an eccentric — a quality I admire. It’s difficult for most of us to resist the push toward conformity. Gary was extremely intelligent, extremely well-educated, extremely caring, and, I believe most importantly, extremely nice. I never heard him say an unkind word about anyone — with the exception of a few politicians.
I know this isn’t about me, but I want to tell this story. A few years back, Gary
developed some serious medical symptoms. He didn’t want to see a doctor, so I
practically dragged him to my car and took him to the clinic. Eventually it was found
that he had a brain tumor, which was successfully treated. All indications since then
were positive. I feel that the single act of helping to give the world a few more years
with Gary has made my life on this planet worthwhile. Gary Oliver was, quite simply, the finest person I’ve ever met, and I believe that there could be no finer human being on the face of the earth.
I’ve learned at least one thing from Gary’s passing — there seems to be no limit to
tears.
Ronald E. Parrish
Marfa
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Dear Editor:
Gary loved dogs. We befriended neighborhood dogs that were chained or neglected in a yard. We befriended their owners as well. Gary’s easy, sweet demeanor worked wonders on both dogs and humans.
I will miss our conversations about travel in South America. There were no remote villages in Colombia Gary had not visited.
Un fuerte abrazo,
Maryam Amiryani
Marfa
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Dear Editor,
This past Tuesday I had a surprise phone call from Ester: “The reason I called was to tell you that Gary died.”
Not Gary. I guess there were many phone calls that day to many different people in many different places, and I’m sure there was disbelief all around. Not Gary.
There’s a large vacant spot in Marfa now.
Marfa: one of my old friends called it “our little toy town.” And it is: old-timey water tower, wedding cake courthouse, even a choo-choo train. And a population that included millionaire ranchers and the Burro Lady. And Gary: legally blind bicycling iconoclast, who in his youth biked through both Americas, north to south, who was a devout, but not sanctimonious, vegan. Who loved all animals.
No animal died in Gary’s homestead. One day he captured a mouse that had taken up residence and carefully carried her to the creek that separates Sal Si Puedes from Marfa. I told him the mouse probably beat him home, and he agreed.
Gary drew cartoons, Gary showed movies, Gary redesigned the library and gave us the outdoor reading room. Gary loved margaritas.
Gary baked his own bread.
Sincerely,
Emily Hocker
New Braunfels
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Dear Marfa and the Planet,
The brightest star went out last week with the death of Gary Oliver. I am honored that he was my friend. Gary did so much for the community. When we were working to create the Marfa Community Health Clinic, he was all in. He played music at fundraisers. He spent an entire day with my husband and a stripper, taking up the old floor in the future clinic. He was a tireless cheerleader. Gary was funny, smart, kind, compassionate and the most optimistic person I have ever known. He also grew amazing tomatoes. He will be so deeply missed.
Kate Wanstrom
Austin
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Dear Editor,
We wanted to write to express our deep sadness at Gary Oliver’s sudden passing. Our little town is dearly missing an incredible Marfa character and a bright shining light.
We met Gary around 2005, when he was moving the antenna for the pirate radio station across town and we volunteered to help. Pirate radio was a beloved “institution” in Marfa, about the only way we could hear an amazing array of eclectic music, right on the radio. From the start, Gary was so open and kind and welcoming to us.
Over the years we continued our friendship and bonded over movies. Gary was so curious and adventuresome in his choice of what to watch. He put in untold hours researching films, looking for tips on what to program, upgrading the movie room at the library, and writing those emails with a trove of information on each film he was screening. He loved the hunt, and he deeply appreciated that this often crass, commercial medium could truly be transformed into art in the right hands.
This is just one small facet of a very intelligent, kind, generous soul who lived among us. He will be dearly missed in this community.
Susan Kirr & Rusty Martin
Marfa
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I met Gary Oliver in the 1990s when we were partners in crime fighting the proposed Sierra Blanca nuclear waste dump. We hit it off from the start, and I became a frequent house guest and backpacking partner. LIke everyone I was shocked to hear the news of Gary’s sudden passing, but fortunately I had just finished reading a book on grief and had just read about the stories from folks who had been near death who had a vision of a “crowded room,” so I imagined Gary entering that crowded room and someone handing him an accordion to join a big jam session.
Gary rode his bike into Marfa sometime in the 1980s during his travel days where he had been a mochilero in Latin America and even hiked across the famous Darien Gap, a wild jungle region on the Colombia/Panama border. But when he rode into Marfa things clicked and he ended up settling down in the Sal Si Puedes hood of Marfa. Gary became the cartoonist for The Big Bend Sentinel where he cranked out cartoons that delighted the masses but pissed off the powerful. Gary penned dozens of cartoons for the victorious Sierra Blanca nuclear waste struggle.
On many occasions I would notify Gary I was going to see him for a couple days and then ended up staying for a full week as Gary spoiled me and everyone else with his amazing vegan cooking and his weekly bread baking where he always baked two loaves (one loaf for him and one for someone else). I also felt like I got my own film festival as I would always enjoy the movie nights at the library which Gary hosted. We also played music at times, though I preferred to just listen to Gary do his magic on the accordion. Once I recorded Gary’s group “Last Call Band” performing at the Marfa Lights Festival, which is on YouTube, and there are a couple other clips of him singing and of his cartoons.
In the 1970s Gary was co-owner of a legendary bar in Austin, Texas, the One Knite, fondly called a “notorious dive” where the likes of Stevie Ray Vaughn and Jimmie Dale Gilmore played. Gary was a true believer of treating people right and part of that was no cover charge no matter who the artist was. The bar was constantly raided by police due the bohemian lifestyle in the bar and legendary after-hours parties. The One Knite was closed by the IRS on July 4, 1976.
The no cover charge policy reflected Gary’s high standards and ethics. He was prepared to suffer personally for his stands and did at times. Many times I would go out to eat with Gary and all he would order would be a glass of water due to his strict vegan diet. Gary didn’t cut corners on principles.
When I learned Gary had a brain tumor in 2020 and could no longer play music, my heart sank. He had recently settled into a great relationship with his partner, Annette, when the news came. Annette’s role then took on driving the legally blind Gary back and forth from treatments in El Paso. I spoke regularly with Gary during this period and never saw his will and positive outlook waiver. Fortunately Gary made a full recovery, so the accordion came out of early retirement. Gary and Annette ended up having six great years together as the loves of their lives. While I wasn’t able to visit them much the past years, I know how happy that made Gary in his final years. Life can go from bliss to heartbreak in a second. While we use this time to celebrate Gary’s life, we must also support and lift up Gary’s widowed partner, Annette.
Gary was very deliberate and focused on living life –– he took full advantage of the opportunity to contribute the common good. I learned to not call him on the day of the paper’s cartoon deadline. We’ll never know if he might have foreseen the end, but it is comforting to know how peaceful his passing seems to have been.
There is a saying about people who live life according to their “own law” of personal ethics, trying to do the right thing. One great example of that was Judy Ann Magers, who lived a solitary life for decades riding her beloved donkey, Merle, throughout the Big Bend. No one knew her name so we all called her the “Burro Lady.” Magers certainly lived and died due to her own law (she died by the roadside in Sierra Blanca). Like Magers, I think Gary also lived and died according to his own law, always in search of the truth. The Big Bend Sentinel did a wonderful article on Magers after her death, magically pointing out how we all came to admire the freedom of the Burro Lady, what she represented to us. Gary and I passed her on the road many times. Now Gary has passed on. The rest of us will soon follow. In the meantime we can fondly remember Gary’s wonderful imprint on this planet and try to honor that in whatever way we can.
Gary was a unique and special friend to all. I never remembered Gary’s birthday, but he always remembered mine. I couldn’t have enjoyed his company more. It’s not that easy to find friends of the caliber of Gary Oliver and that has left a tremendous void for all, but Gary spread enough love in life to make this moment much easier to bear. Te quiero mucho hermano. Gary Oliver presente!
Richard Boren
Tucson, AZ
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I first met Gary in the crazy late-1980s when a few of us got mad at the Texas government for starting to build a dump for nuclear waste outside of Sierra Blanca. A lot of our work involved getting to know folks in town who might not suspect that some of the chemicals going into the shallow burial ground a few miles from the Rio Grande would be dangerous for thousands of years. Gary Oliver joined the Sierra Blanca Legal Defense fund and began stirring up protests in the town. Gary and I and AC Conrad were supported by local ranchers wanting to keep their water supply clean; a local merchant, Gloria Addington and her son, Bill; Mary Lynch and her daughter, Lynda from Dell City, who published a newspaper to fight the dump. Word spread, hearings were held, administrative procedure ground on for years. We made trips to Austin for more hearings, and finally, after raising and spending what sounded to us like a king’s ransom (but was probably only about half what we should have paid our lawyer, David Frederick), we won the case. It helped that every week Gary Oliver published an anti-nuclear cartoon that had a whole lot more language in it because you have to know a lot of science and a lot of dirty politics to write and draw cartoons that could make the points he had to make.
The cartoons were just like Gary. He was dead honest. He was pure.
He told the truth about what crooked jerks the nuke business reps were. He pointed out the flagrant bribery of the town and county officials, the local school board, even high school science teachers.
And he did it with a wit that had you smiling as you saw the knife edge go in for the gentle kill.
Olive Hershey and AC Conrad
Houston
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Dear Editor,
During our lives, we meet people who become important and very special to us. Gary Oliver was one of those people in my life. He was such a kind and caring person who never met a stranger. He was always ready to help if needed.
I met Gary while I was head librarian at Marfa Public Library. Little did I know that he would become such a good friend. He was a dedicated patron who served as president of Friends of MPL and was currently chairman of the MPL Advisory Board.
Gary put in many long hours to make it possible for MPL to have a mini-movie theater. Hundreds of movies shown by Gary have been enjoyed by people of our community and Alpine. Thanks to Gary’s hard work and movie knowledge, MPL has an excellent DVD collection for our patrons’ enjoyment.
Another project that Gary helped make possible is the MPL meeting room and courtyard. Programs sponsored by Friends of MPL have been held in the courtyard for the enjoyment of the community. We will long remember and be grateful to Gary for his hard work and dedication to Marfa and our Library.
On a more personal note, Gary was a friend I could confide in and ask for advice. I enjoyed hearing him sign and play his instruments. On more than one occasion, he dedicated the song “Volver” to me, as he knew that was one of my favorites. Gary recorded several cassettes with children’s songs for my kids when they were little. They were enjoyed immensely by both my kids. Gary loved to bake homemade bread. He made sure to bring me a loaf on my birthday in May. Just last month, he showed up to my door with a fresh loaf! It was as if he knew he would not be here this year for my birthday. These wonderful memories and many more will hopefully help ease our loss.
The night I received word of Gary’s passing, I dreamed of him. We were in a large room where many people were coming in to say goodbye to Gary as he was leaving Marfa. He looked so frail and tired. Right before he left, I once again thanked him for all the help he gave me and other MPL directors throughout all these years. We hugged goodbye, I told him that I hoped he would come back real soon. He said “No, it is too far and hard for me to travel.” I woke up to the reality that Gary was no longer here with us. He may be gone physically, but he will forever live in our hearts.
Vaya con Dios, querido Amigo!
Descanse en Paz!
Con cariño,
Ester F. Sanchez
Dear Editor,
It pained my heart when I received the news of Gary Oliver’s passing. He was a blessing for Marfa and the Big Bend area. He believed in The Community. Whether it was a few individuals or the whole wide wonderful world, that’s where you’d find his loyalties. It wasn’t only his loving attitude, it was his loving action. And Gary was a man of action. The fruits of his efforts can be seen in our library and cinema, our local radio, our community clinic, and more. Always willing to help, his sense of humor was appreciated at our house there at the corner of San Antonio and Austin. Often he would stop by on his way to or from the store. Maybe Kate and I would be fortunate enough to receive a loaf of “Gary bread.” Our kitchen would be filled with much talk, jokes about accordions, laughter, some beers and more talk. There was a movement slogan back in the day: “Serve the People!” and that’s what Gary did. He will forever be my good ally, friend, brother and beloved comrade. Gary Oliver, !Presente!
Stefan Wanstrom
Austin and Marfa, 2000 – 2007