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Rest in Peace Dear Corey (Updated)
Corey "Dis" Krull was a professional writer, disabled gamer, and most of all, good friend. Saturday, December 12, 2009, we lost Corey to the afterlife.
I've been pretty fortunate in my life, having only had three people close to me ever pass on. Death is not something I'm used to dealing with yet... if anyone really does get used to it. But I never expected that this would happen. The last time I spoke to him, he told me about his hospital stay and that it was all over, and he was on his road to recovery.
I told him to take it easy, that his health was more important than AbleGamers. Our site would still be here, there was no need to push and make himself sick again. But all he could talk about was how he really wanted to get back into his work, that he had a lot of things he wanted to write about.
That's the kind of person that Corey was. It didn't matter to him that he had just been in the hospital and almost lost his life. He was thinking about us and how he needed to be here to support the cause.
And support the cause he did. Corey was not our most frequent writer, and sometimes he quite frankly told me his heart wasn't into writing some days. But that didn't matter, the pieces he did produce were quality. Despite all of the above, he was definitely one of our most popular and well-received writers.
Corey had a way of connecting with the audience; he had a way of saying "you can do what you want to do. Look at me, if I can do it, so can you!" His article on how muscular dystrophy did not stop him from playing videogames received an incredible amount of viewers, and even more fans.
We would talk almost every night, of course, I wish now that I had taken more time to talk. But we were gamers, a gamers game, that's what we do. We would sit and we would talk about the numerous people that would contact him through AbleGamers and ask them how they could play. He jokingly said that QuadJoy should be giving him kickbacks because he has sold so many of them to people who needed them to help game.
But it was quite by accident that I even found out how many people he had helped, and honestly it was one of the last times that we would ever speak. You see, he didn't brag about how many people he had helped, there was no giant scoreboard that we keep showing how well you're doing. He did his job because he was passionate about it. He didn't receive any compensation, yet day after day, he would get up and write some of the best content we ever posted.
I was fortunate enough to co-write a couple things with him, he was fun to work with. And yes I realize that everyone speaks well of the dead. But Corey really wanted to learn, more than any other writer has ever done, he really wanted to learn everything about writing and how to do it better.
Not only was he my protégé, the one who was going to be the head writer as we all move up like organizations do, but he was my friend and confidant. I told him things that I wasn't allowed to tell anyone, things that could have easily gotten me in trouble with Mark or this organization or that organization. I could sit there and complain to him about the politics behind the nonprofit.
He would sit on the other side of the screen, taking time away from playing fallout three or whatever FPS he was into that day, and just sit and tell me that what we are doing and going through was worthwhile. That it didn't matter who doesn't like AbleGamers or why, it only matters that we have helped the people. He reminded me that we don't do this for free, we do this because we want to be a part of something larger than ourselves.
And that's exactly what Corey "Dis" Krull was. He was a part of something bigger than any of us. He was a part of the accessibility movement. He was a hero to people who thought they could not play games any longer. He was my content expert. He was an AbleGamers' writer.
He was my friend. And I hope to God he knew that.
Steve
Please take a moment and post a comment or a message on his wall.
UPDATE From Corey's parents...
As you know, we lost our beloved son, Corey Krull yesterday. Our hearts are broken and we can’t imagine life without him. We wish to thank Mark and Steve of AbleGamers.com for their friendship and belief in Corey. To all of Corey’s friends and associates in the gaming world, thank you for your special words of condolence. Gaming was such an important part of Corey’s life! He felt AbleGamers gave him the voice to help those who needed assistance to game. Writing for Ablegamers.com enriched his life as much as he hoped to help others. When Corey was playing a game, no one knew the physical challenges he lived with. He was competitive and we’d often hear him either laughing or yelling at the game. Please remember Corey in your prayers, but know that he’s already earned his wings!" ~Greg and Edith Gustafson
Some of Coreys Work
- Emotiv Epoc Working with AbleGamers to be More Accessible
- Muscular Dystrophy Doesnt Keep Me From Gaming
- Point and Click Games: I Got Your Mouse Right Here.
- Video Games - the Natural Pain Suppressant
- World of Warcraft Addicts to Receive In-game Counseling
- A Look into Morse Code And Accessibility
- Fallout 3 : Is it True Napalm Tastes Like Rainbows?
It is not fair when someone you care about is taken from you well before they should. Corey, rest... enjoy the freedom you know have and know that you touched so many people's life while you were here.
Rest in Peace Dis... and thank you for letting me know you, you were a pioneer that ALL of us here at AbleGamers owe. You were the first person to think of using the net for game accessibility. D-Gamer.com was the first... Godspeed good sir.
I never knew Corey personally but I am grateful for his passion of helping kids with disabilities to keep on gaming. My son, AJ, has Duchenne muscular dystrophy, too and gaming is the one thing he loves to do! And Corey has helped us in knowing how to keep this accessible for him so that he can continue to do this as he gets older. I am proud to have been his FB "friend" even in name only. He gave me hope that my son will be able to contribute to society in such a positive manner as he becomes an adult! My deepest sympathy to his family, his co-workers and friends! He can now run with the angels! God Bless you, Corey!
I will miss Corey's writing and his passion, both for gaming and for accessibility. He was one of the voices that confirmed my belief that I did have the right to be able to play games and that I shouldn't give up on the idea.
Rest in Peace, Corey. Your spirit will stay alive here at AG, along with your memory.
Dear Corey,
Here's a letter that you will never read, from someone you never met face to face. So much about that sentence is sad; first, the realization that you closed your eyes for the final time and the pain of your passing will be hard on many, second, knowing that all of my contact with you was only through the internet, and will remain that way forever.
While I never saw your face, or heard your voice, I already could tell what kind of person you were. You were both kind, and passionate. You reached out. A glance at your Facebook page says a lot about you. I'd say over 95% of the post are AbleGamers/ gaming accessibility related. You knew what your message was, what to do with your life. You wanted to help others.
I wish that I could have gotten to know you more personally. I would have loved to be able to see your passion, your life, up close. And although I can't, I'm glad that I got a brief moment where our paths crossed and we befriended each other.
AbleGamers, the gaming accessibility movement, and every life you have touched will miss you.
May your memory give us all energy to continue spreading your message, our message.
Sincerely,
Tara
Corey is definitely an awesome guy. I loved his work at d-gamer and I grew to love him even more when he joined us here. He will be missed by so many of us so very much. He could always make me smile and I hope I was able to do the same for him as well.
My thoughts and prayers go out to his family. Thank you for sharing Corey with us all. What a kind, caring, funny, thoughtful, smart, and brave guy. We are all better people for knowing him.
What a loss. Corey always came across as such a decent man, willing to share, and push things along in a friendly manner. I personally learnt quite a few things from him. He made a real difference. He'll be missed and not forgotten.
http://dgamerblog.wordpress.com/
Barrie
We had been emailing just a week ago about a new tech project that Corey was very excited about. I never met Corey in person, but I knew him through his writing as able in every sense of the word. Corey was a very able person despite his condition, and he will be greatly missed by us. We will pick up from where he left off and continue with strength from his inspiration.
I count myself fortunate I was here when Corey was. Our most sincerely condolences to his family and many other friends at this time.
Too Bad we lost such a nice, caring person as Dis "Cory" was. I did not really know him but we messaged back and forth a few times, but in those few messages I could tell he enjoyed helping others beable to play games when they thought they could not.
Rest in Peace Dis
I have translated the letter from his mother to spanish:
"Para todos los amigos de Corey y asociaciones en el mundo de los videojuegos, gracias por vuestras palabras de condolencia. ¡Los videojuegos eran una parte tan importante de la vida de Corey! Él sentía que AbleGamers le daba la posibilidad de ayudar a quienes lo necesitaban para poder juegar. Escribir para Ablegamers enriquecía su vida tanto como la esperanza que tenía de ayudar a otros. Cuando Corey jugaba a un videojuego, nadie sabía los problemas físicos con los que tenía que convivir. Era competitivo y a menudo se le oía reír o gritar mientras jugaba. Por favor, recordad a Corey en vuestras oraciones, ¡pero sabed que él ya ha ganado sus alas!". Greg y Edith Gustafson.
And the last paragraph of his first article:
"Como sabéis, los dispositivos para poder jugar pueden ser caros. Además, es necesario encontrar los dispositivos que funcionan mejor para cada uno. Hacer tus propias modificaciones que se adapten a tu capacidad física es otra opción, pero esto también suele ser caro. ¿Pero qué es más importante, el coste o la libertad? ¿Libertad? Sí, libertad. Para aquellos de nosotros que somos verdaderos jugadores, no sabemos lo que haríamos si no pudiéramos jugar. Esta es la razón por la accesibilidad es tan importante, en los dispositivos y en los juegos. Se trata de una cuestión que debe abordarse para el bien de todos. Los juegos nos dan un mundo de acceso y libertad." Corey Krull.
I never knew Corey.. wish I did. I found this site after being unable to game anymore since Oct. 2008. His article on MD, which is what I have. The same kind, too. Duchenne's Muscular Dystrophy, hopefully with his devices I will be gaming soon.
Getting enough money for the QuadJoy will be daunting. But sooner or later I -will- be back to playing FPS/MMOs with friends.
God bless to Corey's family and friends. He will be missed, but remember the impact he had and still has on many people's lives.
Adam.
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