Myth of Arrival

In sad news, Tamara "Tammy" Faye Messner, passed away on Friday (March 7, 1942 – July 20, 2007) after a battle with colon cancer. For those of you who did not grow up in the 1980s following the much publicized scandals involving the Moral Majority and their televangelists (stealing millions of dollars from their followers) her passing might not mean a lot but for the rest of us Tammy Faye was the only decent (if totally naive) person in a bunch xenophobic, homophobic crooks that made the term "family values" a hissing and a curse and claimed AIDS was their god's punishment on Queer people for their "lifestyle choices." Whatever. Perhaps Frank Zappa's song, "Jesus Thinks You're a Jerk," sums up how the rest of us felt rather nicely. "[Pat] Robertson says that hes the one/ Oh he sure is,/ If armageddon/ Is your idea of family fun,/ And hes got some planned for you!/ (now, tell me that ain't true)/ Jesus thinks you're a jerk …"

But what I remember Tammy Faye best for is that she was the only televangelist who openly championed Gay rights in a time when the Gay and Lesbian communities in America were heavily under siege by those who preached only hatred and violence towards them. In an NPR interview old school drag queen and NYC icon Lady Bunny said, "Whoever thought that a televangelist would become a gay icon? But somehow it happened." Indeed. In the same interview, Randy Shulman, publisher of a gay newsweekly in Washington, D.C., says, "We could all stand to learn a lesson from [Tammy Faye], because if you can find it in your heart to love everybody, no matter what their flaws, then how is that a bad thing?"

I suppose I would not have had Tammy Faye on my mind of late if it wasn't for the fact that The Eyes of Tammy Faye, a documentary of her life narrated by RuPaul, happens to be one of Mary's (my sister/in/law) favorite movies.

Tammy Faye, you will be missed.

Imagine there's no heaven
it's easy if you try
no hell below us
above us only sky
imagine all the people
living for today . . .

To everyone who was able to make it to the vigil, to everyone who sent their love and thoughts, to everyone who knows and loves Robert, thank you.

There is a service planned at Lansing Community College's Dart Auditorium on March 6, 2007 (though times and a fixed date have not been named yet). I will keep you posted.

At the vigil about 250 friends, family and supporters attended; a copy of John Lennon's Imagine was distributed and sung.

Police: Suspect in Busby slaying killed himself
55-year-old handyman who lived in building owned by victim identified as likely killer

By Kevin Grasha, Lansing State Journal

About 1:30 a.m. Wednesday, along a dark, rural Clinton County road, police heard a gunshot from a pickup they'd been following in the search for a suspect in Robert Busby's slaying.

Minutes later, two more flashes of light came from the cab of the parked 1999 Chevrolet Silverado, registered to the prominent Old Town businessman.

The driver, a 55-year-old man authorities say killed Busby, was dead.

"We do believe we have the killer of Mr. Busby," Lansing Police Chief Mark Alley said Wednesday at a news conference attended by about a dozen of Busby's friends.

Alley did not identify a motive or the name of the man, who killed himself along Shepardsville Road near Ovid.

The man worked for Busby, 60, Alley said, referring to him as a "handyman."

Friends of Busby said the man lived in the basement of a building Busby owned near Creole Gallery, a popular venue for live music, theater, poetry readings and visual art.

Busby had been reported missing; a detective found his body Tuesday afternoon in the basement of the gallery, Alley said.

A cause of death has not been released, but Alley said Busby's body was covered in debris, as if someone was trying to hide it. It's unclear when Busby was killed, police said.

Ingham County Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Dean Sienko on Wednesday said a cause of death had not yet been determined.

About 250 pay tribute

In a statement made Wednesday evening, Busby's daughter, Ena, and his girlfriend, Meegan Holland, said, "The overwhelming support and love we've experienced the last couple days is a testament to Robert's kind spirit. His heartbeat was Old Town.

"In the past couple years, he was thrilled by all the entrepreneurs who opened businesses here. He would want to see the neighborhood continue to thrive."

About 250 people gathered in the twilight Wednesday for a candlelight vigil in front of Creole Gallery. The sidewalk in front of the door was strewn with red rose petals, bouquets of flowers leaned against the gallery doors and tiny votive lights flickered in plastic cups.

In the street, Busby's relatives, friends and admirers clutched dripping candles, hugged, cried and talked in hushed tones.

Damita Zweiback of Lansing stood near the gallery door, huddled with friends. She met Busby through his longtime friend, Suellen Hozman.

"We've attended lots of events here and of course, see Robert around town," she said. "I came to support his family … and to remember him."

Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero, who met with Busby's family Tuesday night, called Busby a kind and trusting man who reached out to many people.

"Maybe this one time, he trusted too much," Bernero said. "But that's the person he was - generous and kind to a fault."

Summer Schriner, owner of Grace, a women's apparel store in Old Town, was one of Busby's many friends.

"I think we all just feel very drained right now because the loss is just right now incomprehensible," she said.

… accipe fraterno multum manantia fletu atque in perpetuum ave atque vale.

"… accept now this sad brotherly offering, wet with tears, and forever and ever hail and farewell." translated by Sedulia.

I'm devastated over the news of the murder of Robert Busby. Tonight (Wed. Feb. 28th, from dusk on), there will be a candlelight vigil outside his Creole Gallery in downtown Lansing's Old Town for all who knew Robert and called him our friend, teacher and inspiration.

To say that Robert is the art community of Lansing is not praise, it is simply the truth. Through his Creole he not only brought in talented musical acts and art from around the world at a time when Lansing's local art scene was dubious at best but also provided a place for our small poetry readings to happen month after month for years. He helped rejuvenate Old Town back when it was nothing more than boarded up wrecks and a strip bar.

How do you write praise for a man who is the back bone of your community? And he has been murdered. And I am at a loss for words.

Homicide stuns Old Town
Creole Gallery owner found dead; police search for man's truck

By Kevin Grasha and Tom Lambert, Lansing State Journal.

Family members and police confirmed late Tuesday that the body found earlier in the day at the Creole Gallery was that of prominent Old Town businessman Robert Busby.

At about 1 p.m. Tuesday, police went to Busby's gallery at 1218 Turner St. - he had been reported missing Monday - and discovered a body in the building, which he owned.

About seven hours later, family members arriving at the gallery tried to console one another shortly after learning what they had feared for most of the day was true.

"It's just terrible," said Mike Busby, one of Robert Busby's brothers, outside the gallery Tuesday night.

Lansing police, who are investigating the death as a homicide, are searching for a pickup registered to Busby: a silver, 1999 Chevrolet Silverado with a Michigan license plate 3897DF. Police are asking anyone who sees the truck not to approach it, but instead to call 911.

"Somebody has that truck," Lansing police Lt. Bruce Ferguson said. "Once we can find that truck, we will get some answers."

An autopsy is expected to take place this morning, Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Dean Sienko said Tuesday night.

Busby, a driving force behind revitalization in Old Town, lived in an apartment above the gallery, a well-known venue for visual art, poetry, theater and live music. The news of his body's discovery left the Old Town community stunned.

"It's a great loss for the community," said City Council President Harold Leeman, who went to Old Town on Tuesday afternoon to talk to grieving business owners.

"Most people are in shock. You always see him at different events; you just take for granted you are going to see him again."

'Godfather' of Old Town

Busby has been a fixture in the neighborhood for three decades. People who knew him referred to him as either the "godfather" or "mayor" of Old Town.

"He was such a dear person with such a big heart," said Debbie Preuss of Preuss Pets in Old Town, as tears filled her eyes at the thought of losing a friend.

"He was somebody who embraced the community. He was one of a kind."

In 1978, when Turner Street was dominated by boarded up buildings and a notorious bar, Busby was part of a group of people who opened the neighborhood's first art gallery, said Roxanne Frith, who has known Busby for decades.

Frith called Busby a "supporter of not only the arts but the collective community of North Lansing, long before it became Old Town."

His passion remembered

Jamie Schriner-Hooper of the Old Town Commercial Association said Busby's passion has been transforming what was once a run-down neighborhood into a vital arts and entertainment area.

"We all feel as though we have lost our dearest friend," Schriner-Hooper said in a statement.

Mayor Virg Bernero added in a statement issued Tuesday night: "Robert was an extraordinary community leader, a talented artist and a trailblazing entrepreneur who led the rebirth of Lansing's original downtown."

This song, The Parting Glass, has been close to my heart for all my life. I will sing it tonight at the candlelight vigil for you Robert.

Of all the money that e'er I spent
I've spent it in good company
and all the harm that ever I did
alas it was to none but me
and all I've done for want of wit
to memory now I can't recall
so fill to me the parting glass
Good night and joy be with you all.

Oh, all the comrades that e'er I had
they're sorry for my going away
and all the sweethearts that e'er I had
they'd wish me one more day to stay
but since it falls unto my lot
that I should rise and you should not
I'll gently rise and softly call
good night and joy be with you all.

Ruelaine Stokes, coordinator of the Old Town Poetry Series, just sent me this. I can't believe this. I do not have all the information at this time. I am at a loss of words. I am sorry.

Tonight (Wed. Feb. 28th, from dusk on), there will be a candlelight vigil outside the Creole Gallery for Robert Busby, our dear friend ‹ the owner of the Creole Gallery and the host and supporter of the Old Town Poetry Series, who died Monday night. If you have instruments or poems, perhaps we can put them to use.

In creating the Creole Gallery, Robert was the greatest kind of artist. He created. . . step by step, over many years . . . an environment in which people could come together to celebrate art, music, poetry, genuine human connection, and community itself. I first experienced the sweet air of freedom surrounding art at Robert's former gallery on Turner Street, known as Two Doors Down. The performance events there still stand out in my mind as blessed events. Like many other people, I "cut my baby teeth" as a performer at Two Doors Down. It was the place that I learned that the combination of poetry, community, and spirit could give me and others a state of bliss. . . . . that music, poetry and art could activate those blessed moments when one feels deeply alive, whole, and in communion with others.

There is a beautiful quote by Ursula LeGuin. It begins, "Community is the best we can hope for, and for most of us, community means touch, the touch of another's hand, the dance danced together, the work done together, the child conceived together, the sledge hauled together."

Robert had the gift of nurturing and building community, and for that . . . and for the gift of his gentle, wise, delightful self, we will be forever grateful.

Power writes:

Earlier today, my friend Robert Busby was found murdered in the basement of his home/business.

I met Robert fifteen years or more ago… My then-wife rented a building (now home of October Moon from him to teach art. I spent a lot of time there helping her with a variety of things, and on occasion chatted with Robert. I took this photo as part of my The Artists Project exhibit in 1995 (Robert was also an artist).

He owned and restored several buildings in Lansing's Old Town area (Lansing's original downtown years ago) and was probably the most devoted person in turning the area back into a thriving community. I attribute most of the gains that Old Town has made to his efforts. When I first moved to the Lansing area, Old Town (I don't think the area even had a name then, actually) was rife with crime and was a pretty scary place through which to drive, and spending time would not have been something I'd have wanted to do at that time. But Robert made his home there and persisted, making it a very livable place for others.

About six or seven years ago, I received a phone call from his girlfriend, asking for advice with regard to presenting concerts at Robert's Creole Gallery. She and I have become best of friends since then and Robert and I have become better friends. The three of us hung out a little bit in Memphis last week as she and I were attending the same conference. I met a couple of his sisters Friday afternoon.

While I can't claim to have been amongst his closest friends, I can still claim to know that he was about as good a person as I have ever known — generous and kind. For the better, he affected the lives of many, many people, including those who aren't aware of his efforts in Old Town or who might never have known him.

He will be sorely, sorely missed.

Lorna Dee Cervantes posted this today:

FROM Regina Chavez y Sanchez:

My beloved husband, Trinidad Sánchez, Jr., died today at the Methodist Hospital. He was such a loving man, gentle spirit and leader. His words and laughter will live on forever. The poet, activist and teacher must live on in all of us!

This is my cat, Bouge. She
has been such a part of my
life for the last two years.

She passed away this morning,
all by herself, alone.

I am so terribly upset.

(1994 - March 13, 2006)