AARON MARRS: July 4, 1978 - January 15, 2005

There's one thing for sure about tobyMac: the dude knows talent when he sees it. As co-founder of Gotee Records tobyMac's discovered and enabled creative influencers ranging from Out of Eden and Relient K to Jennifer Knapp, GRITS and, quite notably, Aaron Marrs.

While I dig each of those "finds," Aaron Marrs is the one who's connected with me most. That said, it wasn't the artistic talent of the indie rocker/songwriter/graphic artist/adventurer that drew me in; it was his inclusive spirit, that laugh, those joyful, gentle eyes of faith.

A year before I met Aaron, tobyMac took a pivotal trip to Louisville, Kentucky in 2000 to attend an artist showcase. As he strolled the venue, he soon noticed a stunning poster at one of the merch tables. Noticed it? No. Rather, it owned him. Toby looked at the 21-year-old guy behind the table and asked, "Do you know who designed this poster?" When he responded, "I did," Toby mentally pulled out his mini cassette recorder and made a note to self: "When Gotee has an opening for a graphic artist, hire this kid." It was only a matter of months before Aaron got that call and joined the Gotee crew.

Since then, many have come to know and appreciate Aaron and his work. In addition to his artful designs of various CD packaging, who can forget his humorous role as John Reuben's manager (complete with brown velour sweat suit) in the rapper's "Doin'" video? The spiked red-haired Aaron in the front row of the classroom for Bleach's "We Are Tomorrow" video? Or what Aaron's hilarious mug on the front cover of Relient K's Employee of the Month EP?

The summer that followed Aaron's arrival at Gotee, I came on board as the label's new publicist. The thing that stands out in my mind about my introduction to Aaron was the soft cast on his left leg. One co-worker explained that Aaron was lead singer of indie rock band Forever Texas, and that he'd injured his knee during a performance. I made my own note to self: "Behind this easy-going guy's warm, jovial manner, is a man who's a rock'n freak onstage."

From that summer of 2001 until September of 2003 when I joined CCM Magazine, I thoroughly enjoyed my stint as a member of the Gotee family. And like each of my co-workers there, I considered Aaron a favorite. Aaron wasn't a rare breed; he was the only of his breed. One of my favorite things about him was his depth of passion and kindness. Those two traits rarely go hand-in-hand. In fact, I'm hard pressed to name another person who, for me, has modeled both Christ's humble gentleness and His bold sense of adventure as much as Aaron.

That bold sense of adventure would soon take Aaron to the edge of mortality--and beyond. A little more than a year ago he departed Gotee and co-founded upstart Paper Jack Films (paperjackfilms.com). Then, during the summer, Aaron traveled with a few friends to the island of Kodiak in Alaska to film a documentary about the dangerous profession of deep-sea crab fishing.

Aaron, an avid fresh water fisherman, had long been fascinated by the lives of Alaskan crabbers. I'll never forget the conversation prior to his departure when he explained the perils faced by these fishermen. Images of The Perfect Storm entered my head; except in this case, the fishermen often work in heavy winter storms that cover the boats with snow, hail and ice. Oh, and the waves are "only" 20 feet high. Thankfully, Aaron was planning a summer trip--that'd be milder, right?

As it turned out, that summer at sea met Aaron's expectations and then some. He was so taken by the experience that in November he told family and friends he would soon return to Alaska. Aaron had made such a good impression on his ship's captain that he'd been asked to rejoin the crew after Christmas. With the opportunity to earn up to $8,000, Aaron saw it as a chance to finance the remainder of his documentary. I wish he hadn't.

Early Saturday, Jan. 15, while Aaron was still sleeping, his boat--The Big Valley--capsized in the Bering Sea, about 78 miles from the nearest island. The Coast Guard immediately received the distress signal from the 92-foot boat's emergency position indicating radio beacon, and, within a couple hours, arrived at what they described as a "debris field." Of the six people on board, three were found; only one who'd been in a life raft survived. Aaron and two shipmates were lost at sea.

Less than a week later, I made the drive to Aaron's memorial service over in Louisville. When I arrived at Saint Margaret Mary Parish, I discovered that, though I was a little early, I was hard-pressed to find a seat in the large sanctuar--standing room only. Should I have been surprised that hundreds upon hundreds showed up to say "Goodbye" to our dear friend? No. After all, this is Aaron Marrs we're talking about.

[Update: AARON MARRS' MEMORIAL CONCERT--Sunday, March 13 at Rcktwn. in Nashville. Relient K, Holland, The Kick, The Evan Anthem, John Reuben and Bleach (reunion) will perform a benefit concert in Aaron's memory. Proceeds from the concert will go to finance the completion of his deep sea crab fishing documentary. Tickets are $18 presale on itickets.com or $20 at the door. Doors open at 6pm, show starts at 7pm.]

-Jay Swartzendruber, CCM, JayS@CCMmagazine.com

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