Anyone active within the multiple myeloma patient and caregiver community in recent years knows the name Sid Hider.
Sid, who made his home in Waitakere City, New Zealand, was diagnosed with Stage 3 myeloma in 2001. A number of years ago, he started publishing a blog, http://supersidnz.blogspot.com, where he described the treatments he received and the challenges of being a myeloma patient.
Not only did Sid publish a blog about his battle with myeloma, but he regularly visited other myeloma-related blogs and websites, leaving comments, questions, and encouragement.
It was in this way that I -- and the other members of the Myeloma Beacon team -- first "met" Sid, who was one of the first myeloma patients who contacted us after we started publishing The Beacon. Sid stumbled upon The Beacon one day and, after checking out the site, he sent us an email offering praise and support.
As you read through Sid's blog, you will get the sense that he was a realistic person, yet he never let his realism stand in the way of being optimistic and positive. This special combination is something that one doesn't encounter very often, and I wish it were more common.
Sid Hider passed away about a month ago, on September 16. There are countless people who will miss Sid, not least his family and friends, and I offer my condolences and best wishes to all who knew and were close to him. I hope that Sid knows how much he meant to all of us, and how much we will miss him.
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