J ames Bradley Clark — known as Applefan on FlyerTalk — passed away suddenly from a heart attack on Friday, June 17, 2016 at the age of 46 while at a coffee shop during a trip to Lynnwood, Washington and is currently being remembered on FlyerTalk.
According to his obituary, James is survived by his parents Germaine and Jerry; loving wife Shao Qun; sister Valerie; and half sisters Florie and Capucine. “A quiet man throughout his life, James immensely enjoyed travelling, baseball, Asian food and culture.”
A memorial service for James is scheduled for Sunday, July 31, 2016 at 1:00 in the afternoon at First Congregational Church of Twinsburg in Twinsburg, Ohio.
In Memoriam: Applefan
James Bradley Clark first posted as Applefan as a new member of FlyerTalk on Friday, January 14, 2000, wanting to know where to stay in Frankfurt.
The last time James posted on FlyerTalk was also on a Friday — February 26, 2010 at 12:34 in the afternoon Eastern Standard Time; or 9:34 in the morning on Thursday, February 25, 2010 — when he asked these two final question on FlyerTalk:
Can you really buy a day Pass for the Koru Lounge at SYD? Can you be flying any airline or just Air New Zealand and Thai?
He never posted again on FlyerTalk — although the last time he logged into his account was Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 7:33 in the evening Eastern Standard Time…
…and although he was basically inactive on FlyerTalk for greater than six years and posted content infrequently — only 638 times in greater than ten years — fellow members of FlyerTalk remember him fondly.
“Applefan (James) loved to travel, explore, and experience new cultures”, posted FlyerTalk member blakeinspace. “It only seems fitting as I met him at a coffee shop and it was his favorite beverage. We can be taken from life at any time, but at 46, his journey seems acutely short. We still had places to go.”
James introduced blakeinspace to an interest in travel that he otherwise may have never known. “Tips, how to maximize my dollar, things to do or see, places to eat, getting along in the culture, art… My greatest homage to him is that I can (and have) passed those things to other people. I know many of you take it travel for granted, but in my youth… Dad putting up the family in the Motel6 was high living as we trekked to the Ozarks in something that resembled Lampoons Vacation… His friendship quite literally changed my life and made me aware of horizons I never knew were there.”
FlyerTalk member SanDiego1K — who is the community director of FlyerTalk — was in shock when she first learned the news and remembered Applefan, who “came to the San Diego FT get together in 2001. I actually thought he loved apples and perhaps owned an orchard. It was a long time before I purchased an Apple product and realized that was likely what he meant. I’m really sorry to learn he left us so early.”
Summary
I did not know James personally nor have I ever met him or communicated with him; but the loss of a FlyerTalk member is still sad for me. I really dislike having to mourn another of our brethren.
I am mourning the untimely loss of Applefan, as 46 is too young an age at which to embark on that final departure, so to speak. I hope that the heart attack was quick and painless for him — to the point where he never knew what happened — and I hope that he enjoyed his life to the fullest. If you would like to honor his memory, please be sure to “sign” this guestbook. I did.
My thoughts and prayers are with his family and his loved ones.
Rest in peace, James.
Source: the official obituary web site of James Bradley Clark.
