By John LaRocca
Hearing the news of my friend Dave Korner passing away was tough.
I met him in 2013 at Dave Meltzer’s house at a wrestling PPV party. It was my first time at Meltzer’s house. Right away, Dave K. welcomed me and made me feel comfortable. Dave K. would buy Meltzer and himself Subway sandwiches. He didn’t want to leave me out and offered me half of his sandwich. I politely declined. At the next PPV party the following month, Dave K. had a sandwich for me.
That was Dave K. in a nutshell. He was always thinking of other people. I remember he once told me that he enjoyed volunteering at the VA hospital. He simply said he loves to help out there.
A few months after I first met Dave K., he told me about his illness. As he talked to me about it, he listed all the things he was doing to fight it. I admired how brave and strong he was. He noticed that I had a sad look on my face, but he quickly told me it was okay and he was going to kick its ass.
Every time I would see him from then on out, he wouldn’t dwell on his health issues. He wanted to hang out and watch some pro wrestling with his buddies. Last year after a surgery, he was talking a bit slower and had to use a cane at times. There are some short steps leading to Meltzer’s family room. I would always put out my hand to help him down the steps. Each time he would say, “I got it.”
I love watching wrestling with my friends. It’s my time to let the stress and worries of the world behind for a few hours. I know Meltzer has fun too, but he is working at the same time. Meltzer might get deep in thought on his work while watching. I and others would just leave him alone and let him work, but Dave K. would always ask him questions about stuff, and break Meltzer’s concentration and make us all laugh. I loved hearing about stories of them in college watching wrestling, since they were longtime friends.
Dave K. loved pro wrestling, especially WWE. I loved his take on the current WWE product as he always cracked me up with his comments. He would instigate a game in which after each match, he would quietly ask the group to predict how many stars Meltzer would give it. I am really going to miss that. Dave K. also loved the ladies of the WWE. His favorite was Lilian Garcia. Each and every PPV, he would point out how much he loved her.
I’m going to miss Dave K. so much. I am happy to know that he is now pain free and at peace after years of fighting his illness hard and never giving up. I am going to miss our talks, our laughs, and our hugs. Dave K. is gone, but he’ll never be forgotten.
Love you my friend. Enjoy those great matches beyond the clouds.