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Editorial
A small town grieves
The most meaningful part of living in a small town, to me, is the depth
and breadth of our connections. We know each other in so many ways.
No doubt many villagers have, as I have, a variety of connections to the
families of Tim Lopez, Michael Rittenhouse and Iddi Bakari. I didn’t
know Tim’s family, who lived in the Clifton area for only a few
years, but friends who worked at YSI valued Barbara McQuiston, Tim’s
mom, as a respected colleague. Others knew Tim as a sweet and slightly
goofy young man making his way to adulthood.
Ten years ago Iddi Bakari Sr. was an uncommonly kind aide in the Friends
Care Alzheimers Unit, caring for my former mother-in-law in her last years.
Later, during a difficult time, I experienced the healing powers of Maria
Bakari. And like many villagers, I thrilled to the singing of Martin Bakari
in school musicals and, more recently, to the charisma of his little sister,
Zyna. Gilah Rittenhouse was the good-hearted, hilarious and beloved manager
at the Antioch School, where my daughter attended school.
All of us have connections like this, good feelings toward good-hearted
people with whom we share space in this little town. We watch each others’
children grow up. Now, two of those children have died and a third is
in prison. The pain their families must live with now is beyond anything
I can imagine. And although our loss doesn’t begin to touch theirs,
this loss of three young lives is a tragedy for our community.
These things aren’t supposed to happen here. We’re supposed
to be smarter, wiser, hipper than this. We have caring teachers, good
schools and we pass all the levies they throw our way. We have music,
art, original theater, extracurricular activities galore and still —
some kids get lost. Who knows why? We need to keep trying. We need to
try harder.
We know each other in so many ways. In this painful time let’s hope
that all of our valued families find a little comfort in this, a community
sharing its joys and its heartbreaks.
—Diane Chiddister
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