Dear Mr. and Mrs. Svitek
I am writing you with a heavy heart after receiving word
of your daughter’s death. My name is Eric Myers, and
I co-instructed the Adventures Cross Country Four Corners
course with Kate last summer. I cannot begin to imagine your
family’s loss but would like to share with you how incredible
of a person your daughter was.
The first memory that comes to mind when reflecting on Kate
and my time together is genuinely how much fun we had. Her
laughter was infectious, her outlook always positive, and
her passion for life unmatched. One of my favorite aspects
of our course was to watch Kate open up to and interact with
our students. Her teachings and love for outdoor education
inspired all of our students. There was one student in particular,
Andy Wentz, whom Kate particularly inspired. The two of them
would laugh and joke like they had been friends for years,
but when necessary Kate was able to utilize this bond to develop
Andy into one of the strongest leaders on our course.
An area where I learned a great deal from Kate was in dealing
with the business side of education. Her knowledge and perspective
on how to manage a business and a trip successfully opened
my eyes to an entirely new side of the industry she loved.
I spent many hours picking her brain on how if given the chance
she would improve the company. I would have loved to see the
final product of her dreams.
Beyond our trip with our students Kate and I had a great
time traveling the Western United States. After driving as
many miles in a van as we did we were able to become close
friends in a short time. We got to be tourists in Vegas, she
threw a surprise birthday party for me in Colorado, we saw
the sunrise over the Grand Canyon, we blew our leftover food
money in one fell swoop at the Cheesecake Factory in Phoenix,
and got hopelessly lost in Telluride.
The stories are endless I am sure. Watching Kate work was
incredible. Her passion for teaching and creating a successful
trip from start to finish was awe-inspiring. The lives that
she touched, those of students, other instructors, friends,
are better because of the time spent with your daughter.
I will be returning to ARCC this summer where I was looking
forward to reconnecting with Kate. She will be dearly missed.
Enclosed are some photos that I took of our course. I hope
that you can add them to a memory book and that you can share
this part of Kate’s life with others that are mourning
her loss. If you have any questions or would just like to
hear more stories feel free to contact me. Also if you would
like to contact person with ARCC, I feel that I knew Kate
better than most.
My thoughts and prayers have been with your family.
With loving memories,
Eric Myers
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