A tribute

A grad school friend fowarded me an email this afternoon informing me that our department's graduate secretary had passed away from complications following a hip replacement.

Anyone who hasn't been to graduate school probably fails to appreciate the importance of a graduate secretary in the lives of graduate students. And Dorie was one of the best.

Dorie was the keeper of all of the information in our program. She knew what forms had to be filled out and where they had to go when they were done. She knew who needed reminding three or four times and who could be counted on to be early with everything.

She was in charge of welcoming candidates to their interviews and welcoming them again as new graduate students. She could tell which nervous student needed reassurance and which one needed to be left alone. She always knew who was on the verge of tears and just how to stop it.

Part of her job was to hand back exams. She always knew when it had been a tough one. She was always ready with a comforting word. Plenty of tears were shed in her office and that was okay.

Dorie was always ready to listen to a stressed student or share in an unexpected joy. She was a warm smile first thing in the morning and reminder that there were plenty of students who had been through exactly what you had and everyone had come out okay in the end.

Students were always making her promise not to retire until after they graduated. She had finally gotten to the point where she had stopped making those promises and started counting down the days. There were only two or three years left.

Dorie was the spirit and heart of our department and she probably had a greater impact on the future of science than some Nobel Laureates. She will be missed, but she will live forever in the hearts and minds of the students who never would have made it through without her.