Robyn Hill Clancy
Julie and Holli, My father called today to notify me of your mother’s passing as I live in Atlanta, Georgia now. I am deeply saddened to hear of this and will miss her dearly. She has always been a source of inspiration and strength to me. I was a student in her third grade class 24 years ago and knew almost instantly she was a different kind of teacher and a different kind of woman although I couldn’t quite put my finger on it then, but in time recognized (and admired) these characteristics. I credit Jeannette (as I slowly learned to call her at her prompting many years later) with instilling my voracious appetite for reading by encouraging and challenging me to press further with our classroom reading program and allowing me to tend to our classroom library during lunch, a prized permission especially during the cold Upper Peninsula weathers. I still recall the books she read to us and have them on my list to read to my children when they grow older. I also remember being so proud to know that my teacher volunteered at the library and that she was the only teacher in the school to have a computer in her class! Even then, I recognized she was a woman ahead of her time. As I grew older, I came to appreciate her uniqueness and strength as a woman. During college and later as an adult, whenever I came back to the U.P. to visit my family, I wanted to see Jeannette. I always found her perspective on life, learning, pets (another bond between us), gardening (yet another) and relationships refreshing. How I wish we had lived closer! I imagine coffee or tea time with Jeannette once a week or month would have been an honored appointment on my calendar. With her quick wit and introspective thoughts, time would fly by. I will always remember your mother’s zest for life and learning, her passion for her pets (her other “furry” children) and applaud her fierce independence - how I wish the same for my daughters. I am blessed to have had her as a teacher and honored to call her my friend. She will be missed and so fondly remembered. Deepest sympathy, Robyn (Hill) Clancy
Monday April 18, 2011 at 12:00 am
