Sunday, August the 7th, was a sad day for the Moz community when we lost a beloved member due to cancer.

Maybe the newest don’t know him, but there was a “Dog” here that was the smartest and funnier commenter of all: we knew him as goodnewscowboy; his real name was Bullitt Darlington.

The Moz community is proud of these qualities, so well expressed by the SEOmoz TAGFEE Tenets:

1. Transparent and Authentic;
2. Generous;
3. Fun;
4. Empathetic;
5. Exceptional.

and Bullitt was the best example of this philosophy.

Transparent, because – even though he used for a long time the photo of his beloved golden retriever – we always knew he was talking from his soul;

Authentic, because he never hide himself behind a curtain of presumed knowledge or superiority;

Fun, because he was able to invent the most amusing joke and his a la Laurel & Hardy comments threads are going to be in the story of the SEOmoz blog;

Empathetic, because he was there when someone needed it, with an email, with a tweet, with a comment in Facebook;

Exceptional, because his intuition was so lucid, that he was able to argue and well guess so many things in SEO and marketing... while declaring, in his honestly and humbleness not being a real SEO.

Yes, SEO was not Bullitt’s main profession. It was his dream, what he wanted to be and what he started to be and preparing to make as his real job, one of the passions that made him fight his cancer. But he was an SEO in his heart.

I still remember a night this last January when I, Bullitt, Casey and Dr. Pete where having a totally not SEO chat on Twitter. It was like a conversation friends have sitting in a bar and sharing a beer, nothing remarkable, but unforgettable was that sensation of closeness we felt for few minutes.

We left with a promise that Bullitt’s health prevented us from making: to have the same conversation but in person during the last MozCon in Seattle, where we all were going to be.

Bullitt has passed away, but someone only dies when the last memory of him fades away. His 2689 comments here will make live in our memory always. Go and read them… and remember a man called goodnewscowboy.

 

From the SEOmoz staff:

We remember Bullitt Darlington, aka goodnewscowboy, as the most kind, witty, helpful and warmhearted soul to grace this community. Donations in Bullitt's memory can be made to the Salvation Army, one of goodnewscowboy's favorite charities.

Below are some of our favorite comments from goodnewscowboy. Feel free to share your own memories in the comments below. He wouldn't want it any other way.