Our dear friend Jesper "graffen" Hess sadly passed away on Friday, the 14th of October. He was traveling in Berlin with his boyfriend Magnus when Jesper suffered a sudden heartattack. Our thoughts are with Magnus, Jesper's family and friends.

Jesper was a BornHack organiser. His personality, positive outlook and abilities will be missed dearly in the organisation. Nothing will fill the void left by his passing, but we are grateful for the years we got to know him.

Jesper's kind-hearted nature, sense of order, humor, and generally pleasant personality have significantly impacted the BornHack organisation. Jesper could channel frustration into positive energy like no other. When we repeatedly kept making mistakes on the logistics between ourselves and a larger delivery vendor, Jesper took over the Logistics Team, and the issues ceased to exist.

As part of BornHack's Code of Conduct team, Jesper placed himself in the epicenter of our community goals of inclusion. When conflicts arose he worked with community members and helped to resolve them in a positive way. The last thing Jesper said on the BornHack Orga Signal group the day before his trip to Berlin is an example of his constant community leadership efforts. He was telling us about a plan he has made for BornHack to collaborate with an NGO which works on making events more accessible for people with hidden disabilities. We will do our best to continue these efforts without him because we know this work was important to Jesper.

Jesper also stepped up to lead the Info desk Team when he saw a need. He was passionate about the Wellness Team where he organised massages for sore volunteers, and made sure our wilderness hottub was operational by cleaning (and thoroughly testing!) it. The Radio Team was a one-man operation using Jesper's radios, frequencies, repeater, and know-how.

As good as he was at it, Jesper never actually intended to become part of the BornHack organiser team, it was all a happy accident. He purchased a BornHack hoodie in 2017 which was mistakenly labeled "Organiser" on the back, so we suggested he join Orga, and he did. Jesper was always up for fun and quirky ideas. Joining the BornHack Orga on a whim, thus sparking countless long and wonderful friendships and maturing the organisation in the process, is a fitting analogy for his personality.

Outside of BornHack, Jesper has also contributed significantly to Denmark's IT security, privacy, and hacking communities. He ran numerous PGP key-signing events back in the day, and he helped start the highly successful Cryptohagen movement. He also helped build and run the Danish organisation data.coop, which works on local, decentralized hosting of key internet services for its members. He was also a HAM operator (callsign OZ9DLP) active in the Danish HAM community.

During BornHack 2023 we will find ways to remember Jesper, who was such an instrumental part of the BornHack spirit and community. We hope people will do what they do best and find creative ways of remembering Jesper.

Jesper was the light and life of any situation. His smile, kindness, positive spirit and constructive approach to everything meant he was universally loved. His legacy will live on forever.

The memorial service will be Friday, October 28th 13:00 at Nordre Kapel, Vestre Kirkegård, Copenhagen. Please also read Magnus' own words on magnusklink.com/jesper.