A tragic loss

[Roderick Colenbrander]

I am very sad to hear his sudden passing. I had the pleasure of
working with him and he was definitely a technical genius. He will be
missed. Best wishes to his family and the team at Codeweavers during
this difficult time.

Roderick

On Mon, Sep 9, 2019 at 2:20 PM Jeremy White <jwhite at codeweavers.com> wrote:
>
> I am deeply saddened to report that our friend and colleague, Józef
> Kucia, died last month at the age of 28.
>
> Józef first contributed to Wine in March of 2012, showing remarkable
> skill with Wine’s D3D technology.  He became a key contributor to Wine,
> submitting over 2,500 patches. He also contributed to other open source
> projects including Mesa and Debian.  Józef founded and led the vkd3d
> project and provided insight and guidance to the Vulkan working group.
>
> While technically brilliant, Józef was a man of few words. He carried a
> quiet kindness, but it could be difficult to draw him out.
>
> One topic that would get Józef talking was his love for caving. Similar
> in spirit to mountain climbing, caving is a sport of discovery and
> exploration. Groups of explorers seek to uncover and map new cave
> systems while enjoying the startling beauty of the underground world.
> Caving is a physically and psychologically demanding sport, requiring
> the ability to maneuver in very tight spaces, often in absolute darkness.
>
> A group of us at CodeWeavers had the good fortune of sharing in Józef's
> love for caving in conversation and on a trip to a local climbing wall
> last year. In his quiet way, Józef impressed us all with his skill and
> grace. It was clear from his talents and his joy in conversation that
> caving was a passion for Józef.
>
> This August, Józef took an extended vacation to the Tatra mountains to
> explore the longest and deepest cave in Poland, Wielka Sniezna ("Great
> Snowy Cave"). While exploring, he and another member of his group of six
> became separated by an unexpected flow of water.  Despite an extensive
> rescue operation, Józef and his companion died.
>
> Words cannot express the sorrow and heartbreak we feel.  All of us at
> CodeWeavers extend our heartfelt condolences to Józef's family, friends,
> loved ones, and everyone else who grieves his passing.
>
> We take some solace from knowing that Józef died doing something he
> loved, with full understanding of the risks involved.  We admire the
> courage and ambition he displayed in pursuing his passion.  While his
> life ended far too soon, it was a life well and fully lived.
>
> There will be Holy Mass for Józef at 2 PM in Św. Mikołaja Cathedral in
> Bielsko-Biała on September 11.
>
> Jeremy
>
>