An obituary for Chris Connors, an ordinary but extraordinary man who lived in York, Maine, has gone viral since its publication after his death Dec. 9.
Connors died at his home of ALS and Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, surrounded by his family. His daughter Caitlin wrote the obituary with a cousin as family members reminisced about Connors’ life and told stories about him, The Associated Press reported.
Although Connors was not famous or a celebrity, he lived a full life and had many unusual experiences that made for the exceptional obituary. The first line read, “Chris Connors died of whiskey and stubbornness,” and it went on to say that Connors “lived 1,000 years in the 67 calendar years we had with him because he attacked life,” the AP said.
Some of the unusual experiences included being stabbed saving a woman from a mugging in New York, being a Golden Gloves boxer who later worked on Wall Street, and climbing to the base camp of Mount Everest at age 64.
His family also documented his propensity for swimming in the ocean in January, throwing memorable parties, and spending time with his family just being together.
“The way he died is just like he lived,” the obituary published by Seacoast Online read. “He wrote his own rules, he fought authority and he paved his own way. And if you said he couldn’t do it, he would make sure he could.”
Connors helped found the York Fire Department water rescue team, which mourned his death on its Facebook page.
Readers of the obituary have donated $8,000 to the Chris Connors Fund, which teaches safe boating and water habits to kids, according to the AP.