Although our lady has worked here a long time by nearly any standard, you can’t tell simply from looking. Still, her eyes carry proof of wisdom greater than the sum of her calendar years. Perhaps it’s because she has learned a lot on this journey. Some of the lessons have been hard fought and even harder to sustain; and yet others have come just as easily as a bee flies straight to the nectar.

As you can imagine, she has touched many people in her time here. And the people with whom she has walked are better for having known her, if only for a short while. What do they say about her? They say that she is pretty, but even more importantly, that her heart is good. They say she is smart, but also that she is wise in uncommon ways. And she is not afraid to have a tough conversation. I think I admire this trait the most. It was for this reason you felt good somehow if she had taken you to task over something, because it meant you were important to her—that she cared.

Our lady has a quick smile and uses it freely—it is something else she taught us. And when she listens, she uses her eyes as well as her ears. If perhaps you say something funny, she throws her head back and laughs as if she has not a care in the world, even though she does. She makes everyone in the room feel just a bit more important. And during her time here, she must have said “thank you” ten million times. She is genuine. Although our lady didn’t know her well, she cared very much about the woman who made coffee in the café.

And so today, as she prepares to leave this place she loves and the people she cares for, we are happy for her. True, we will miss her and we know she will miss us, but we are excited for her future. And she has prepared us well. Someone once said that the ultimate legacy is leaving a place better than it was when you found it.

Yes, indeed. Our lady has done very well.