Tony Burton
Our beloved webjefe David McLaughlin, the visionary founder and CEO of Mexconnect, died on September 5th in hospital in Victoria, British Columbia. He passed peacefully, painlessly, with close family by his side.
David was genuinely one of a kind: intelligent, compassionate, generous, witty, friendly and thoughtful.
He dug deep into his retirement funds to start Mexconnect, convinced that there was a need to offer reliable information to anyone interested in living in, working in, or visiting Mexico (even from their armchairs). He established an office in Ajijic, taught himself html, and hand-coded thousands of pages and photostrips.
It was 1996 and David was way ahead of his time: Mexconnect was one of the earliest content-rich sites dedicated to a single country anywhere on the web. Mexconnect’s excellent search engine predates Sr. Google! David introduced online forums before most people had even heard of such crazy places to exchange ideas. David presided over the entire Mexconnect community with a sensitive and understanding hand and his love and passion for Mexico, and for MexConnect, never ebbed.
As publisher and editor, David worked closely with dozens of contributors (writers and photographers), encouraging them to find their voice, explore Mexico and express their diverse viewpoints.
David was an inspiration to me and to so many others. He was an amazing business partner, mentor, advisor, editor, and surrogate older brother. OMG, we shared so many laughs over the years! His departure leaves a gaping hole that will never be filled.
David, my heart is heavy but I still have your Tilley hat and will return it next time we meet. ¡Hasta la vista, Don David de las Gracias!
David was a devoted and loving husband and father. On behalf of the entire Mexconnect community, we send our sincerest condolences to his friends and family, especially to his daughter Melissa.
Source: mexconnect.com
The Mazatlan Post
