Memories of June

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      I lost a dear friend recently.

      Her name was June Epp, and we worked together at the Georgia Straight for two decades or so.

      She was awesome.

      I first met June—also known as "Goon", "Goonie", or "Gooner"—in the summer of '82. I'd recently been hired on as a part-time typesetter, and between the two of us we'd type up the entire paper. Back in them days you used a big typesetting machine that had a wheel you would wrap these ribbons around whenever you wanted to change fonts. I seem to recall that Bookman was one of our faves.

      We'd type our little butts off, especially on the run up to press time. We'd often work double shifts, slaving through a Tuesday night until the paper was ready to be delivered to the printer's Wednesday morning. Then June would casually drive off to her home out in Richmond. She was tough.

      She was soft, too. I remember going to movies with her (we often got free passes) and she always used up a ton of Kleenexes during the sad parts. "Geez, Gooner, turn off the waterworks, will ya? It's only a movie."

      But her heart was way too huge for that.

      Even though she cried too much at movies for my liking, June and I became good buddies, and I soon realized that we had a lot in common.

      She loved going to concerts and parties; I loved going to concerts and parties.

      She loved John Lennon; I loved John Lennon.

      She was absolutely crazy about Neil Diamond; I loved John Lennon.

      At that time the Straight office was located on the corner of Fourth & Arbutus, a grungy little space over the Magic Flute record store. A small gang of us production staffers with nicknames like "Gidge", "Stanley Q", and "Ken Dean" toughed it out there for a few years until the paper's success led to a move to nicer, bigger digs at Pender & Bute.

      Alright, we were downtown!

      Gooner was in her glory, especially around lunch time. I could never figure out why Tsunami Sushi on Robson closed down, considering how much we invested in salmon rolls alone.

      The early nineties was a great time to be in the newspaper biz, and we had a lotta fun, even when June wasn't in the picture:

      Philip Chin

      For 12 years or so I rented a divey house near 58th and Main, and had a lot of parties that the cops usually attended as well. June rarely missed one, always showing up with a bottle of wine, and usually some homemade snacks. Regulars at those bashes included a rough 'n' tumble bunch of characters from a local hard-rock band called Mad Duck. They were a positive-minded bunch of music-crazed yahoos from Red Deer, and June really hit it off with them.

      She hit it off with almost everyone, actually. But you didn't want to cross her. Like I said, June was tough. She stood up for herself. You didn't summon "the Dragon Lady" if you knew what was good for ya.

      June's no-bull approach to life and work made me a fan forever, and I cherish the memories I have of her.

      Like that time back in '84 or so when I took her to see Iron Maiden at the Pacific Coliseum. She wasn't a big metalhead; she mainly wanted to go because the opening act was called Twisted Sister.

      Or that time at that Christmas party at the Town Pump when she drank too much of her cherished wine and.... boy, did we milk that episode for years to come. I did, anyway.

      Or when she made that lengthy, two-ferry trek up to Powell River because there was no way in hell she was gonna miss my wedding.

      Or when her first grandchild, Vaughan, was born and she wouldn't stop going around the office telling everyone that he was named after Stevie Ray.

      The last time I saw June was when she came by the office back in 2012, and a few of us old-timers (and ex-staffers) went out for lunch. She was suffering from Alzheimer's at the time, and might not have remembered me very well, if at all. But we had a good time nonetheless.

      Shannon Li

      Rest in peace, Gooner.

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      UPDATE: a Celebration of Life for June is scheduled for Friday, June 19, at 2 pm at Victory Memorial Park Funeral Centre, 14831 28th Ave., Surrey.

      In lieu of flowers, please send any donations to the Richmond Kinsman Home Support Society at 100--6100 Bowling Green Rd., Richmond, B.C. V6Y 4G2.

       

      Comments

      10 Comments

      Jon Cranny

      May 26, 2015 at 2:08pm

      Sad to hear this news. I got to work with June but, just for a short while. I would also see her at the bus stop after work and we'd have nice little chats. She was a great person and was always friendly. R.I.P, Gooner.

      cranky mom

      May 26, 2015 at 3:17pm

      Can someone please remind me why we called her Goonie for all those years?

      She was very generous and would bring the whole production department egg salad sandwiches. We used to almost beat each other up over those sandwiches. A Starbucks regular, and a super social and giggly lady who was extremely proud of her kids and grandkids.

      One time we drove out to Coquitlam to see Nearly Neil perform. It was as close as we could get to the real Neil Diamond.

      RIP little Gooner. XXX

      Laura Moore

      May 26, 2015 at 3:41pm

      Sad news. June was one in a million. Everyone loved her at the Straight. So generous and thoughtful, always bringing gifts. She continued to call me to see how I was doing, even when she was suffering from Alzheimer's. Rest in peace Goonie, you will be missed.

      Kevin Statham

      May 26, 2015 at 6:04pm

      Nice memories Steve. Makes me miss the old days.

      Charlie Smith

      May 27, 2015 at 3:31pm

      June was also an eagle-eyed proofreader. She was exceptionally intelligent. And you could always count on her to show up at the annual JDRF walk for diabetes.

      She was interned during the Second World War because she was of Japanese ancestry.

      I remember asking June about this experience. She was always so hearty and she recalled having some good times in the camp as a child, which surprised me.

      Then June said something I've never forgotten. She said it was actually more difficult for her after she left the internment camp because that's when she felt the sting of racism from some of her teachers.

      This taught me something about B.C. history.

      June never seemed to dwell on that experience, though.

      Ramona Wildeman

      May 27, 2015 at 3:37pm

      Oh. Man. Steve. Thanks for this. Such great memories I have of that time on Pender & Bute. RIP June.

      Martin Dunphy

      May 27, 2015 at 4:18pm

      June was one of the most kind-hearted, generous people I ever met. Upon hearing that one of my children had a serious medical condition, she was constantly asking about him, bringing little presents, and even once purchasing an expensive air-ionizing system because she had read that it might be beneficial for his illness.
      I loved that, as polite as she was, she was firm in her beliefs and never hesitated to call out injustice or denounce hypocrisy, no matter the source.
      She was loyal to her friends, always willing to give people the benefit of the doubt, and seldom walked away from my desk without me wearing at least a trace of a smile.
      And even though I had to prompt her a few times to remind her of who I was the last time I saw her, when she made a trip into town a few years ago, she finally said, "Oh, right!" Then: "How is your boy?"

      Email from Verne McDonald, via Charles Campbell

      May 28, 2015 at 4:16pm

      I will raise a glass to June with anyone at any time, being mostly a man of leisure these days. I last spoke with her five years ago when I was trying to give her one of my Fab Supper prints (only a portrait of Tom Jones would have interested her more). She was being moved because her Alzheimer's was making it impossible to stay in her house, and she promised me she would call me with her new number and address. She forgot, no surprise.
      When I first started at the Georgia Straight, I noticed a copy flow problem and mentioned it to Maja Grip, who with a smirk and a warning sent me down the hall to talk to "the Dragon Lady". After an initial bristle, June and I had a pleasant agreement on production standards and she acknowledged that my suggestion to deal with the problem just might work. On my return to editorial, I said to Maja that her warning had me all nervous for nothing, and she was impressed. "If the Dragon Lady doesn't think you're an idiot, you might be staying here a while," she said.
      For the next 17 years June was one of those at the Straight who protected and defended me, including from myself when necessary. When they were tossing out furniture during the move to Burrard Street, it is no accident that the stuff I salvaged included June's old work station: a compact wooden desk and a swivel chair with a bumper sticker on the back reading, "There must be a better way to make a living". I of course still have it, though "There must be..." is almost worn off.
      I wonder if, after she retired, she kept the blow-up of a Rex Morgan panel that I stuck to her new work station after we moved to Burrard. Under a top-line of "June has a sudden revelation!" the wide-eyed character cries to a relaxed and smiling Rex, "Wait a minute! We're just a couple of dopes!" It was still there when they laid me off.
      There might be people sadder than me that she is gone, but I'll bet there are not many.

      Steve Newton

      May 28, 2015 at 5:12pm

      nicely said, Verminator. I was hoping you'd weigh in. You're the only guy who went to Mexico with Gooner, far as I can tell

      Michael Simmons/Gerry Burke

      Jul 3, 2015 at 9:02pm

      With a birthday call tonight from our long time friend Ray McAllister came the sad news that June Epp is of this world no more. What is there to say? A bright star has joined the countless others in the night sky. We loved her. Shine on you crazy diamond.