Final Word By Gabe Romero ’08
Playing Every Shot
I
was recently on an orientation fl ght around Fairbanks, Alaska— mostly off the controls and navigating by landmarks. It was a rare, relatively stress-free fl ght for a young military aviator like myself and I was enjoying it. As the fl ght was ending and my co-pilot turned to make our fi al approach, I gazed down and located the giant house below that I had been using for months as a reference point. As I was looking at it this time though, I noticed it was edged with the lines of a golf course. All winter I had unknowingly been using the Chena Bend Golf Course Clubhouse as my turning point on approach to my home airfi ld.
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Everyone who knows me knows that my life and golf have been intimately intertwined. My time at Webb was marked with many important golfi g moments. I vividly remember two: the pleasant shock of being told after two years of petitioning the school that fi ally Webb would once again form a competitive team, and second, the incredible sting of losing in a playoff to advance to the CIF individual tournament. Still, neither of these beats the pure elation I recall when, as an assistant coach, I watched the Webb golf team win their fi st league championship! Each of my golfi g landmarks connected with Webb has been pronounced and packed with emotion. And even now, with my Chena Bend landmark below me, I’m drawn back to Webb once more—to one golfer in particular, Adam Cave ’12. I fi st met Adam at the Claremont Golf Course the summer after I graduated from Webb. He was an incoming freshman who I was hoping would play golf for Webb to ensure the continuity of the fledgling program. My fi st impression of Adam was that he was quite the converser, which is unusual as most golfers tend to be introverts. In fact, within the fi st few holes, we were engaged in such dynamic and genuinely fun conversation that I quickly forgot we were even playing golf. His upbeat positivity and lack of frustration was especially striking for a beginner golfer. Yet, the most distinct memory I have from golfi g with Adam was his insistence on playing every shot and fi ishing the hole. He refused
“I now see that Adam became the complete archetype of what Thompson Webb envisioned from a graduate of his school.”
to take “gimmes” on short putts and instead played his round shot-for-shot all the way until the ball found the bottom of the cup, a lesson that stayed with me throughout my college tournament play. While not the most technically gifted golfer, there was no doubt that Adam enjoyed the game and I enjoyed playing with him. As time passed, I always looked forward to seeing Adam, either at Webb events or on campus at the Claremont Colleges— where we were both students later. Each interaction with him was noteworthy—I often left the conversation smiling and feeling better than I did before. So, of course, like so many this December, I was shocked and heart-broken to learn that Adam had been killed in a traffic accident. He was only 22 years old. Truthfully, I used to believe that Adam’s unique ability to be good and to make others feel good about themselves was a character trait—something he inherited, probably genetic. But, as I thought about it after his death, I now see that Adam became the complete archetype of what Thompson Webb envisioned from a graduate of his school. Adam Cave is the standard for what it means to be a kind, gentle, and honorable man. While the bar he set is unattainable by most of us, I am comforted by the fact that I see many elements of Adam’s personality and character in other Webb students, graduates, faculty, and staff alike. No one can ever replace Adam, but we can strive to use his memory as a catalyst to love more deeply and live more fully. To be good. Winter in Fairbanks will likely last longer than the California winters I’m used to. And like winter here, the pain we all feel after losing Adam will linger and not soon be forgotten. I do believe that spring will eventually come, and with it warmer weather and less solemn days. In fact, when I return I think I’ll fi ally play that Chena Bend Golf Course, and do it without any gimmes—playing every shot. I will smile and be grateful and remember Adam.
Gabe Romero ’08 is an Aeromedical Evacuation Officer currently flying Army Blackhawks in Afghanistan. His home station is Fort Wainwright, Alaska. He graduated with an MBA from The Drucker School at Claremont Graduate University and a BS in Geology from Pomona College. At Webb, he was a member of the Honor Committee, a Day Student Prefect, Captain of Varsity Golf, and a Rogers Scholar. Webb Magazine • Spring 2017