I met Hakim as a child when I was growing up in Northern California. He was a few years older than me. His family joined the church in Klamath where my Dad was the pastor.

I remember going camping with Hakim and his brother Raaman. We also would go to the beach together and go brush diving. I didn't see Hakim or Raaman for years after I moved to Kentucky as a teen, but got to see him in the summer of 1984 after I graduated when my family went out to California for a visit. Then in 1986 when Patti and I moved back to Eureka, I got to see The Ben-Iesau family again. Hakim was a groomsman at our wedding.

Now that I have moved back to California I have had the opportunity to get together with Hakim and his family on a few occasion. He attended my 40th birthday bash in September 2005.