Greetings Creekers!
Last Wednesday afternoon, after a few days of gray weather, a soft breeze came up, the skies parted and the sun shone down on the 200-plus people gathered to celebrate the life of beloved “Creeker” Sarah Doherty. I am dedicating this week’s column to her.
Sarah passed away suddenly in January, after living a remarkable life of adversity, triumph, love and adventure and left a hole in the hearts of everyone who knew her. Sarah travelled in many circles. Some will remember her for physical accomplishments while others will remember her dedicated work as a paediatric occupational therapist. She will be remembered as a cherished mum, wife, sister and dear friend. The childhood accident that took her leg would have defeated most people but instead Sarah’s resilience, determination and love of life led her down a path of adventure and into the outdoors where she skied, climbed, hiked, paddled and sailed. She climbed Mount McKinley, hopped up part of the ascent of Mount Kilimanjaro, skied like the wind and was the first person I knew to walk the Camino. Sarah and her husband, Kerith, developed Sidestix, customized crutches that have changed the lives of handicapped people around the world. But in spite of these remarkable accomplishments, her best gift was her beautiful, open smile and genuine interest in everyone she met. She has been accurately described as a “social butterfly of the most gorgeous colours.” Sarah loved to talk but she also knew how to listen and in interactions with her you always had her full attention. She loved Roberts Creek and had a community presence noted by everyone.
And so we gathered, friends, family and community members to listen to Sarah stories from around the world and close to home. We laughed and we cried and in a moving gesture of recognition David Roche presented his Order of Canada pin to her family. There were photos of her with the Olympic Torch, standing on mountain peaks, on muddy trails and on her wedding day. In every one of those she is smiling, her radiance shining on us, all those lucky people who were blessed to have her in our lives.
A recent consultation of my calendar revealed that apparently I like to go away a lot in the summer. So this is an opportunity for you to be a guest columnist and write about RC events and issues important to you. Go for it! No gossip though…
Write to me [email protected].
