Toby Raphael RIP: you will be missed by all.

Toby Raphael making one of his wonderful bags

I was shocked and saddened to learn today that a former colleague, Toby Raphael, passed away this week, the news was released in an obituary in West Virginia’s Herald-Mail.

Toby Raphael was well known in the conservation world as quite literally the premier leather conservator, but, he was so much more than that. He was a lovely guy full of enthusiasm and hope for the future of conservation, and I believe he was just beginning to create space for his holistic conservation vision.

I feel privileged to have known Toby, albeit for a short period of time, I learnt much from his approach to conservation, and his ideas about the field as a whole. From my first contact with Toby he came across as the sort of person who would always go out of their way to help others, he was on a trip somewhere in Latin America with a dodgy internet connection but took the time to provide a detailed answer to a question I had regarding a treatment. Not long after that I had the opportunity to meet and work with Toby in person, and it was a joy to learn from him, and to hear his stories of his adventures in Latin America, and within the conservation world.

Toby’s untimely passing is a loss to us all, and I am sure he will be missed by many people all around the world.

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Services will be held Nov. 14 at 2 p.m. at the Presbyterian Meeting Hall, and followed by a pot luck reception at the Raphael Taylor home on Billmyer Road.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the St. Joseph’s Catholic Church Hispanic outreach service program, in Martinsburg, W.Va, where Toby had recently begun volunteering.