Our Friend Aaron Hirschhorn
An unexpected and devastating loss, but a life so worth remembering….
Aaron is my friend, a dear friend. I won’t say was my friend, because he still is our friend.
For so many of us in the tech community in LA, we woke up this morning to the unfathomable news that one of our own is now gone.
My prayers are with you Karine and your 3 amazing, beautiful children, who have been so unfairly jilted in life by losing the father and husband you all deserve. There are so many of us that have been touched by Aaron’s kindness, wisdom, tenacity, generosity and camaraderie. We will all rally around you however we can.
I went through the day today in a bit of a haze, thinking how this brother in arms of ours, is no longer here. Wasn’t it just a couple weeks ago we were planning to get back together on the links and have a proper catch up?
Aaron was not my closet of friends, but he was someone I felt a deep kinship with, as if our lives were on parallel paths in so many ways.
For those of you that did not know him, or perhaps know him much better, I want to share a couple of stories that will tell you a bit about who he is, and how he touched so many people.
An Underdog Story: Aaron didn’t have a bevy of experience or connections when he started DogVacay. He had a vision for a meaningful problem to solve and hustled and fought his way to prominence as a successful entrepreneur. A lot of people talk about following their dreams, he dove in and figured out how to make it happen.
Lunch and Learns: Everyone at DogVacy will know of Aaron’s lunch and learns. He wanted his team to alway have the benefit of learning from people smarter than him, and making work something that everyone could look forward to. I was honored to do one of these, and remembered thinking why didn’t I do more of this for my company. Giving back defined him.
Family First: We were playing golf a couple years ago, when he told me he and his family were moving to Florida. I was taken aback… “Why?” I asked. He told me it was what his wife wanted and that it would be better for his family. He loved LA but was putting his family first.
A True Friend & Someone Who Really Listened: For those of your that have been fortunate enough to have a conversation with Aaron, you know he really listened. He was there, present with you. I remember catching up with him at at tech conference 3 years ago. We hadn’t seen each other in a year, it was a happy reunion. He didn’t look around the room to see who was more important to talk to, he just paid attention and locked in and cared about what you were talking about.
An Incredible Wife: I’ve met Karine a couple of times, I remember one time my wife and I were with her and Aaron at an event and just completely hit it off. We talked afterwards about how we wanted to spend more time together as couples hanging out, that doesn’t happen often. I wish we did more of it.
He Loved His Kids So Much: We rarely had a conversation in the past 3 years where they didn’t come up. He’s an amazing father.
He Achieved Everything You Could Dream of in Business: DogVacay had a successful merger and they are about to go public. How many of us will ever be able to say we accomplished that feat?
His Work Has a Purpose and a Mission: He started a second company to basically be able to cure all pets and animals of the diseases and accidents they have with their own DNA. His mission was to save the lives of your extended family members. How many of us are doing something that worthwhile or important?
He Wasn’t Ruled by His Ego: There was a time that DogVacay was flying so high, and Aaron was always the same guy. Then there was a time that the business was doing well, but not as amazing, and he still didn’t lead with his ego. He just made thoughtful, logical decisions on what was best for everyone involved.
People Loved Working for Aaron: He didn’t try and do other peoples jobs, he did’t micromanage, he didn’t yell or criticize. He just showed up each day and lead and did the work and tried to build and environment and culture that was amazing. I would have loved to have worked for him. How many hundreds of people have a dramatically better career because of him? How many thousands and thousands of people have better lives because of what he built?
All Around Great Guy in Every Way: How many people do you say “that’s just an all around great person in every way”. Great husband, great father, great friend, great entrepreneur, great manager, great community leader. It feels like that distinction is more and more rare these days. And now it’s one less…
Aaron, our friend, we love you. I’ll always remember the moments we had and the conversations we had. I hope to try and be an all around better person in your honor, and in honor of your wife and children.
I Love You Man.
Jason
