My dear friend Rachel Wilkes passed away on January 22, 2011. It was a very dark time in her life when I met her in Ames. I can’t go into details, but she was trying to get through a lot, and ultimately the solution was to move to her parents’ place near Montreal.
She was the only person who understood what I was going through by leaving Christianity and trying to learn about the real world. She helped Kelly when she most needed support to leave Malin, and Kelly and I would not have met if it weren’t for her infectious charm and wit on that first potluck I went to at Ames Cohousing.
Since that time, we have both gotten to know and love Rachel, and it was a serious blow to us to get that phone call last week that she was no longer among us. Kelly and I were always thinking we would see her again. She touched so many lives here. We will always remember her when we move to Oregon…we still have the “What is Love?” poster from the old white house, and it will have an honored place in our new residence.
Below I am posting the obituary that Rachel’s parents sent to all of her friends. We heard that the memorial service in Montreal was absolutely beautiful and the outpouring of love and support was overwhelming. We are also holding a memorial for her in Ames at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Ames this Saturday, February 5th at 3 P.M.
I am still crying for you, Rachel. I keep looking at Google Buzz waiting for you to pop up with news of how well your French classes are going, but this will never happen. I miss you. I am hoping that maybe I am wrong and there is an afterlife after all, and I will see you there.
With love and sadness,
Tony
Funny that my friend’s LinkedIn account was “viewed” by this dead person. I told him to tell LinkedIn that he is being harassed and for them to shut the account down.