I met Dwayne at the first convention I ever went to. It was in NYC back in 1992. I had seen some promo material for Static in Comic Shop News and put together a three page sample based on the ad. I had figured out that Static's powers were electromagnetic. Now I'm not a little guy, but Dwayne was a towering presence to me, so he intimidated me at first. When I showed him the pages he looked at me, keep in mind the book was still months away from hitting the stands, and said, "You figured all of this out from an ad?"
I said, "Well it seemed to make sense." He pulled his glasses down a little and said, "Nice job."
When I finally walked into the old Milestone office on 23rd Street, I was 21, full of piss and so sure I was the next big thing. Dwayne took me seriously from day one but let me know that I still had a long way to go. Dwayne was always willing to help me improve my work. Every time I saw Dwayne, for years, we would catch up a little, trade jokes and stories. I remember Dwayne always being encouraging and always being bluntly honest with me when I needed it. He was a mentor, a friend and an inspiration to me. I'll miss him very much. I rarely cry, but when I heard the news from a friend, I cried. I cried for my loss, I cried for Dwayne's family and those who knew him best and I cried for the voice we will never have creatively anymore.
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