Live for today

Loveless Lake is mourning the death of Lane Burke, who was killed in a car crash on Nov. 8 not far from Loveless. He was the lake's resident historian, clean-water champion, upbeat welcome wagon for newcomers and an all-around mensch. 

At 63, Lane was full of life and plans for the future – a new place in Florida to escape for the winter, twin daughters fresh out of medical school and each planning weddings, and a life ahead with wife, Lisa.

Lane took a keen interest in our little rehab project just up the street from his year-round cabin, and we became fast friends. He discovered the blog by chance and wrote to me that he read the thing from start to finish, and then encouraged me to write a “before-and-after” story for the association newsletter, which he helped publish.

Lane’s genealogical research on lumber baron Joseph Loveless ranks as one of the blog’s most hefty entries.

I selfishly ache that our budding friendship has been yanked from me way too soon. But it’s hard not to look at Lane’s life and see a lesson: The guy lived with gusto from the get-go.

He grew up north of Duluth, in Homecroft, Minn., and took a liking to the north woods as an infant, where his dad toted him around in a special hiking chair. The photos from his memorial service showed a lanky soldier, come-hither sailor, and, later, a doting father and active outdoorsman.

By the time I met him, he had been retired from the St. Paul Companies for about eight years (having taken a buyout when he was 55), and he made good use of his freedom from corporate shackles. He was an accomplished carpenter, handyman and collecter of cool, odd things, all proudly on display at his lake home.

Not long after he and Lisa toured the weeHouse, and hearing our plans to eventually build a stair tower, Lane sent me this drawing he made of our future “weeCastle.”

Not far from our own dreams, Lane. R.I.P.