mach

Today, Mach Arom would have been thirty-nine years old. He would have finished moving into his new apartment in downtown Manhattan, which as of last week has finally been sold. He would have left FCB to work at the IRC. He would have traveled to the far reaches of the globe, making children laugh and touching the lives of refugees with his endless joy and enthusiasm. He would have spread the IRC’s message across the web and around the world, shining the spotlight where it is so desperately needed. He would have mentored the young, counseled the old and inspired the rest. He would have remained very much a mystery to many, as quiet and private as he was garrulous and open, but he would certainly still be very much a part of our lives.

What else would Mach have done? You need only look at all the people around him who are still doing it: At all the creative artists who continue to help and nurture new talents in the ways that Mach taught us. At all those who’ve dedicated themselves to his passions and his charitable causes. And at the vast orbit of friends, families, creatives, coworkers, charity cases, nutcases, transients and vagabonds that he brought together, and who continue to enrich each other’s lives.

What else would Mach have done? All we can say is that it is everything he could have done and should have done. And through us, with any luck, that lives on. Happy birthday, Mach.