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Snoopin’ Around
“Every July and every week thereafter, Dave would call and ask, ‘Do you have a boat parade press release this week for me, Debbie?’ “Now I really wish he would call and bug me about that darned press release. “I know Dave will be watching our 44th Annual Holiday Boat Parade from the skies above Marina del Rey, and we will put on a fantastic show in memory of Dave Johnson and his years of support for the Marina’s most beloved event.” Cindy Williams, current president of the boat parade, recalls how her relationship with Dave began: “My relationship with Dave started out in a wordy way. In 1999 I became involved in the Marina del Rey Tournament of Lights Parade as prize chairperson. “That year, someone wrote a letter to the editor of The Argonaut wanting to know about the boat parade and about ‘what was in it for the boaters.’ “I thought to myself, ‘Obviously that person did not see the list of all the wonderful prizes I worked so hard to get, and I will write my own letter to the editor and let the person know just what was in it for the boaters.’ I wrote the letter and sent it off. “I couldn’t wait to get The Argonaut the next week and see the letter I wrote that would ‘put that person in their place.’ “Well, my letter was there, but so were comments from Dave; ‘While the prizes are impressive, the writer should answer the question that was asked.’ “How dare Dave write what he did, as I had answered the writer’s question. I felt a little embarrassed and told myself I would never write another letter to The Argonaut. Silly me! “In the next few years, especially after I became president of the boat parade, I found out how much Dave loved this special holiday event. “He called us regularly to find out what was happening and was always asking when we were sending the next press release. “I remember one year he came back from a trip early just so he