Ufology lost one of the good ones recently. Don Waldrop, former director of Mutual UFO Network Los Angeles, lost his battle with liver cancer. He and his lovely wife Lin had moved to Florida upon Don’s retirement. He was an accomplished musician, and also a leader in the UFO field.
For years he lead MUFON-LA to become one of the most vibrant chapters in the country, and I was fortunate to have been invited to speak on several occasions. Don and I became friends and also colleagues. Many of you recall me mentioning in interviews, most recently on Coast to Coast AM with George Noory, surgery on one of my alien abductees to remove his possibly alien implant in Los Angeles about 12 years ago. What most people don’t know is that Don Waldrop was very much involved in setting that up. He introduced me to the surgeon who would do the procedure and follow-up work and arranged the setting for the surgery. Don was interviewed by the Israeli film director who featured the event in his documentary, and he struck me as having a very balanced viewpoint on the whole phenomenon. He has always been open-minded yet at the same time a no-nonsense guy who was pretty discerning. He projected valuable credibility on behalf of the field as a whole and we all owe him a debt for that.
During his tenure as Section Director of MUFON-LA, Don also produced the interview show IN CONTACT: UFOs which featured MUFON’s monthly speakers in a personal one-on-one interview. His host was Saundra Marsh, another close colleague, and respected friend. And in one of those fun interconnections the UFO field is known for, my media manager Jolene Rae Harrington was also recruited by Don to sit on the board of MUFON-LA, and she took over as host for IN CONTACT when Saundra went on leave.
I’m grateful to Don for his many years as a Ufology Ambassador, for lending a sense of calm and dignity to “the work” we do. I’m most grateful though for his friendship and support, which never wavered. His wife Lin perhaps knows best of all how important that has been to me. I send my love to her and Don’s family, and my prayers are with them as well. Rest in Peace, Don.
