It is with great sadness I report that after a long and
  hard battle with a terminal illness, our anonymous
  Guru passed away on August 21st, 2001. 

With his passing I am now free to inform you that his
  name was Richard Shomo. He was a kind and
  generous man who asked nothing in return for all
  that he did for the many who sought his advice at
  this site, and the help he gave well beyond the
  initial questions posted here.  Even while he bravely
  fought his devastating illness he continued to
  respond to questions posted to him. 

It has been a privilege to work with Richard, helping
  to secretly accomplish, "something good for free." 
  I  wish I had met him in person. 

After a period of time, his popular Q&A page will go
  back online as an archived reference, not only in
  remembrance of him but because he wished to
  continue to 'do good.' 

I am relieved that Richard no longer will suffer in this
  world, but I shall miss Richard, miss his common
  sense and miss his delightful sense of humor
more than I can express.

May he find his Chuck the Panda alongside him in
  the place he now resides.

Valerie 

If you like, a message of condolence may be
  emailed to me for forwarding to his widow.

A bit about  Richard.........

For nearly two years, battling through days of illness, bouts in the hospital, blood transfusions and horrors even I cannot imagine, Richard remained active as the anonymous 'Guru' for the Emergency Management Solutions web site. He generously provided sound advice and a wealth of knowledge in regards to management issues.

This project came into creation solely because he pushed me along into one of my first projects of 'doing something good for free ' utilizing the wonders of the Internet. He made me believe we really could do something valuable, concrete and free for those who had management questions -from all walks and ranks in emergency response. A very tangible impact, as evidenced by the thank you emails received, was for those who simply did not know where to find an answer, needed clarification or had received conflicting information from employers or governmental agencies. He willing went beyond just answering the initial questions directed to the 'Guru.' He could have
charged a nice tidy fee for his expertise, but never did. His achieved great satisfaction in knowing he was doing something good and making a difference.

Richard was actively involved in many aspects of emergency response, serving with NAEMSP as an EMS Administrator and was very active with the Rural Affairs Task Force for the past 6 years, to name but a few.

He continued to attend college and earned another degree a few months before his death. He accomplished many other small and large goals that he set for himself, goals set without considering if he had 'time' to accomplish them, and then he simply plugged along little by little until he met with success.

He had clinical experience in both EMS and Nursing, was active as both volunteer member and officer, managed EMS in the private sector, and even wandered around a few places outside of the US. 
He held or had taken undergraduate and graduate degrees in Nursing and Public Administration and finished the graduate level in Public Health. His additional experience had been in education, teaching both provider and managerial material in several settings, was a member of local and state EMS Advisory Boards, and worked with a few other local and national committees on EMS issues.