Lad Handelman and friends celebrate the Fourth of July at his house, which was often open to nonprofits like the Boys and Girls Club for fundraising events. | Credit: Bob Evans / BobEvansPhotography.com
Laddie would never admit his birth date, and in truth, we all prefer to think of him as timeless. He was a mentor-turned-friend to so many, and a legend in the abalone business and commercial diving. Here are just a couple remembrances out of thousands.
When you’re lying peacefully at anchor in a secluded cove, preparing dinner, you don’t appreciate things that go bump in the night. I rushed out of my cabin to find the bow of a boat pushed against my stern.
The intruder from the abalone boat Bottom Bandit introduced himself as Laddie Handelman. I had heard of Laddie from fellow abalone divers. I invited him aboard for dinner, thus beginning a friendship that endured from our introduction in 1984 until his death on October 26, 2020.
