Well this sucks. He was one of the first people I met at DMS and helped us launch the resin sig. I appreciated that he told it straight and didnt take crap from anyone. He donated a ton of stamps to the leather sig and was always willing to help.
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Rip, Nick. I will miss our talks. I learned so much from Nick. I will take it on myself to carry on a small part of his legacy and go ape-sh@t when someone puts crap on the surface plate, cheers, Nick.
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Bummer.
This is why we cannot keep nice things…
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For those that would like to take part in a Wake for Nick, there will be gathering at Old House BBQ, 1905 N. Josey Ln. Carrollton, TX 75057 at 7PM this Sunday evening.
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Seems to me that if Looney Tunes & Bugs Bunny hadn’t gotten there first, Nick would have been an apt model for the descriptor “wascally”.
Never shy, occasionally over the top, eager to teach & help, beyond creative. Rest in peace Maker.
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Along those lines, Nick also played a key part in standing up the ‘Plastics Committee’/Work Area. Saw a guy cutting acrylic in Woodshop the other day, and thought “Nick Silva would have quickly redirected that person to the plastics-approved saws.” Nick definitely had a hand in a lot of DMS areas.
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Oh no, I just saw this. Nick was awesome. I sat at the DMS talking with him about art, beer, the ways of the world, a lot over the years. He had incredible insight and experiences to share.
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I, too, was positively impacted by Nick. He taught me a lot. He was an amazing maker and amazing artist and a very interesting person. He had a demeanor about him sometimes which could be a little gruff but I liked him a lot. Like Walter Anderson he was a terrific contributor to DMS, but he could be a little controversial at times. People like Nick and Walter though are what make DMS such a unique and special place to be a part of. RIP NIck.
He will be greatly missed.
I hope to make the wake at Old House BBQ on Sunday at 7PM. I just called Old House BBQ and they told me that they are a BYOB establishment.
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Just a bump as a reminder tonight at 7PM
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Nick was a master of all things cnc. That along with just raw talent and insight made him quite the skilled craftsman and teacher. Plenty of lessons from the school of hard knocks mixed with basic class material made for interesting classes. He created classes for the Haas, Tormach and most recently classes for Mastercam. And there’s so much more. The DMS knowledge base took a hit with his passing.
Unfortunately I will not be at tonight’s wake. Spent the the past week dealing with some kind of sinus / flu(?) crud. It has mostly ran its course, but I still feel lousy and not in a mood to share. Have a voice and cough that will clear a room. So gonna sit this one out. Bummer.
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I’m on the tail end of that same crud, it’s a bummer. I thought I was ready but talked myself a little hoarse during the welding class this morning so I’ll be there but less talkative than normal.
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We did miss you there Art.
Thanks for everyone showing up. A Cheers to Nick. Thanks for organizing @Photomancer
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Thanks for putting this together @Photomancer It was really good to see everyone tonight. Such a talented group of makers. Many of whiom have been made better because of Nick. RIP Nick.
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Thanks for coming. We should have these say every other month. We had 18 people there tonight - OH-BBQ is really good about letting stay a little longer past there closing time, moving tables around etc.
Tim & Dan - not a lot of effort especially when compared to what the folks like Nick are that we honor,
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Looks like a nice gathering.
I only recognized a few of the people in the picture. Either it has been too long or many are new.
Is the ice cream self-serve again?
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Yep, self serve again @Bill
It was great seeing so many friends last night, totally agree that we need to do this more often
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A little of both. The Finance Cmte. determined back in 2019 that DMS ‘is largely sustained on a fairly regularly rotating ‘membership churn’. Post-COVID it was apparent when walking around the Space that there had been a big ‘active member’ churn between 2020-2022. Always good to see the perpetual excitement of new users utilizing the Space.
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I met Nick in his HAAS Class, and was immediately struck with the idea that this was a serious maker who didn’t tolerate fools, much.
I remember him telling us, “I can show you how to run this machine, but I can’t make you a Machinist”. That was a warning and inspiration.
We all really enjoyed his woodworking later, this man was a true artisan maker!
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This is an excellent quote! I think I’ll mention it in my classes.
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