08/11/2026
Duncan Ames was a mainstay at the Fight for It shows over the last decade. I'm actually not even sure why. He largely ran the set-up and breakdown crew for us, an invaluable and thankless task far from the glory of the cage lights.
Ever dependable, he only ever declined my request when the kids had soccer games or gymnastics or was otherwise engaged with a family activity. If you knew nothing else about him, that'd probably be enough right there. But I wasn't above begging, so sometimes he'd work it out with Erica to be there anyways. Still not knowing really why he'd ever go out of his way.
Sometimes he'd bring Z, the kid who we had the pleasure of watching grow up at the gym, and yep, Duncan invested his time there too. Likely for no other reason than he just wanted to help improve the environment his son spent his afternoons.
By the time I got married the Ames' had been long gone from the gym, but that didn't stop Duncan from still making an indelible mark. My wife describes him as the first person to not make her feel out of place at the shows. With his Mexican heritage he was able to put her at ease in her own language. In the last few days since his passing, while we find it difficult to go very long without thinking about the quiet impact he had on us, Kimberly would say, "Duncan era especial."
The guy never asked for anything in return, okay maybe a T-shirt or two, but for what he did that was nothing. I both knew Duncan and I didn't at the same time. We'd sit together at the fights and make a joke or two, share a glance in amazement on the action at hand, or commiserate with each other about not feeling like kicking fans out of the wrong seats. But he mostly just went about his business reservedly. We designated Kim to be the one to pass along his comp for the day because he never wanted to accept it...from whom he jokingly ran away from once to avoid it. So I'm still not quite sure why he kept showing up all those years. Maybe, just maybe, because I asked.
Please consider sharing or donating to the Ames Family here: https://mealtrain.com/r8vn17
