Scott Eugene Bartell

How wonderful it has been to be Scott´s cousin! Most imaginative and talented kid I knew, always engaging, kind, and full of creative ideas. Gathering all the younger kids, we played many iterations of his favorite theme, Scottish Wars. He would be the dad, and inevitably act out a dramatic death scene that made me cry. So uncannily realistic it was that now it makes me wonder about past lives and reincarnation....

I miss your evening calls from across the miles, Scott, fondly reminiscing, and wistfully analyzing our lives, families and ancestries. You are prince of a fellow, and so very loved!

I first met Scott in the early 1980s, at a pipers´ meeting where we planned to start a new band. I played with Scott in that band, on and off through the eighties and into the nineties.

It was very easy to get to know Scott. He was always entertaining and informative, with a vast store of knowledge on a wide range of topics. We shared similar opinions and philosophies on many things, and conversation just flowed. While we did not meet outside of the piping scene, we quickly became friends within that scene

He got me a gig to play for the Twin Cities Marathon. Even after the band was no more, Scott would call me up every year, and the two of us would take turns playing at mile 21 to urge the runners on.

Then came the time when I put the pipes down and drifted away. I lost contact with Scott as a consequence. The years flew by until I saw Scott again at another pipers´ meeting, a gathering for appreciation of the kind of music we both enjoyed. We were both decades older, but it´s the same Scott. Once again, I basked in his stories, his music, his encyclopedic knowledge, and just his presence. I am very glad we re established contact, and I got to see him again. Scott was a kind and extraordinary soul, a voice for all that he held important. It is a privilege to have known him and to call him friend.