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Fran
VanTreese
I met Mary Beth ten years ago at a kayak lesson. She had just completed her first rounds of chemotherapy and was determined to get back to her life. I liked her immediately, perhaps in part because she was a fellow mid-westerner, and I admired her positive attitude and zest for life. We went from borrowing kayaks to buying kayaks. Eventually, with a group of other people, we paddled (in ten-mile sections) the Connecticut River from Middleton, Connecticut, to Hanover, New Hampshire -- a total of more than 170 miles!
We also explored local lakes and ponds, local trails, and places further away while she shared her knowledge of birds and nature. I have a collection of little gifts of information she gave me in her unassuming way.
For example, when I told her I had a hard time distinguishing the downy from the hairy woodpecker, she said, without missing a beat, “the hairy is huge.” It took me a couple of seconds to realize she had given the mnemonic to remember it!
I admired her grace and determination to do as much as she could in the face of increasing health challenges. By positive example, she will have changed the way I approach whatever “new normal” I may have to face. She was a good friend and enriched my life in many memorable ways.
My only wish is that I had met her earlier and had the opportunity to have more adventures with her.
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