Missing My Friend Marcia

Genealogists in Birmingham, AL - 2010

I got the sad news this weekend that my friend Marcia Rice had passed away. I was looking for a photo of her among my photos, and this was the first one I ran across. The above photo was taken one night in Birmingham in 2010 after a full day at IGHR. The waitress offered to take the photo so I actually was in the shot! Marcia is the third one from the front on the right. (I'm just in front of her.)

I'm trying to remember at exactly which conference Marcia and I first met, but I honestly don't remember. I remember eating with her while she was at the FGS Conference in Knoxville.

Marcia & Mark talk to one another at NGS in Charleston.

Marcia, Beverly, and I roomed together at the NGS conference in Charleston, South Carolina. That was an adventure. I remember that there was a walk with a bridge between the convention center and the hotel. Marcia would wear her little hat with a headlamp at night to make sure she could see the path. We had a great time at that conference. I tended to stay up a bit later visiting in the lobby than Marcia and her sister did, but we all had a great time and a good visit.

We, of course, saw each other at various conferences through the years and have kept in touch via Facebook.  I was so happy that she was able to come to FGS this year in Birmingham this year. Now that I've received the sad news of her passing, I'm even happier that I got to spend a bit of time with her at that conference.  A couple of weeks ago, she made a comment about not having decent barbecue within 500 miles of Coos Bay. I asked her if she was coming to Knoxville to get some. (Everyone still raves to me about the BBQ we had at the FGS conference there.) She had replied back that it sounded like a good idea to her, so I've been looking forward to her visit. When I last spoke with her on Facebook, she was at the airport awaiting her flight to Canada to see her daughter and her daughter's family. I didn't know that would be the last time we ever "spoke" here on this earth. I'm missing a great friend, and my heart goes out to Beverly and to the rest of Marcia's family.