Dear Jim, Jen and Eric,
I was shocked and saddened to hear about my cousin Andrea's passing. We had been in touch with emails the last few years, and it was great to get to know her again through this medium. I have many fond memories as a child, traveling back to Marguerite, PA to visit my grandparents, and of course her family lived next door. My sister Cath and I would often hang out with Andrea immediately on our arrival. I was only a young boy, but remember her and Aunt Cecilia fondly. They were always so kind and generous to us. I am a great lover of music, and I have to say that Andrea influenced me enormously in my younger years. I find it now ironic that I lived in "the big city" of Cleveland, but had to go back to a small town in PA to hear about these new rock and rollers that were unknown to me at the time. She turned me on to so many bands...from the Doors, to the Beatles, to the Monkees...I can still remember sitting on her floor, in her house in Marguerite, looking through the Beatles White Album and being blown away by the visual of the gatefold album cover as the music played in the background. Through our emails I luckily got to tell her how important this moment in time was to me, and how she influenced my rock and roll beginnings. She seemed humbled and unaware of any of this. So today I listened to the Beatles White Album as a tribute to Andrea, and it was a difficult listen as I was overwhelmed with many memories. Music is very powerful.
I only wish that we could have had a chance to meet these last few years. She was very helpful and kind in October when my brother Bern passed away in Seattle. Andrea had many useful suggestions on air travel and websites to check out. Always helpful, always ready to help family.
So thank you Andrea, for being my email buddy, you will surely be loved and missed by not only your immediate family in Virginia, but the Megrey family in Ohio.
Our deepest condolences...
Love & Peace,
David and Kimberlee Megrey