(Kathie Van Den Brink Meek, Jan 15, 1956 – Oct 19 2010. Photo Meek.)

The gathering the other night at Willow could have gone any direction, north or south. There was reason for great sadness, and there was reason for satisfaction at twenty-five years of survival for The Professionals in an uncertain world.

In the end, the little group accepted both, but no one left Willow without thinking of Kathie, and of Tom and the kids she left behind. The fragility of life is something we ignore until something like this comes along.

Word had spread rapidly of the bad news. It hit me particularly hard, since I was proud of what the Meeks had done, coming like me from West Michigan. Her husband and I were both Ann Arbor Wolverines, and bounced around many of the same ports of call in the wider world, far beyond the lovely peninsula. The official obituary is something we will publish in the Quarterly in her honor in a few weeks. I feel like I need to do something now, though. The official version goes like this:

“19 October 2010. Kathie Van Den Brink Meek, 54, wife of Rear Admiral Tom Meek. Kathie passed away suddenly at her home in Virginia Beach, leaving the Information Dominance community bereaved and dismayed at her loss. She had recently undergone minor surgery.”

“Kathie was born Jan. 15, 1956 in Allegan, Mich., to Alvin and Betty Van Den Brink of Fennville, Mich. Her husband Tom, children and parents survive her. Kathie graduated from Fennville High School in 1974 and from Central Michigan University in 1979 with a B.S. in elementary education. She also earned a master’s degree in public administration (MPA) from the University of Oklahoma in 1993. Kathie married Tom on Aug. 29, 1981.”
“Kathie and Tom have two children, Tong Paul Meek, 19, and Moira Hui Meek, 15, both of whom were adopted in China during the mid-1990s. Other surviving family members include two brothers; sisters, three sisters, and her father and mother-in-law, as well as numerous nieces and nephews. “

“Kathie was a woman of faith, keeping her membership in the United Methodist Church in Clare, Michigan, regardless of where she lived in the world.”

“The Meeks were a total Navy couple. Tom joined the service shortly after their marriage in 1981 and after selection to Flag rank assumed command of Navy Cyber Forces in May of this year. A native Wolverine, Tom graduated from The University of Michigan in 1979, completed graduate school at Michigan State University in 1981, and was commissioned through Aviation Officer Candidate School in 1982. “

“As a family, Kathie and Tom lived in exotic places around the world, including Japan, Italy, Germany and Bahrain, and numerous other duty stations throughout the United States, on both coasts and in lovely Hawaii. The greater Washington, D.C., area was like a second home to Kathie, having spent many years there during Tom’s various shore assignments.”

“She was her own woman, too, and had a professional career that accommodated the vicissitudes of life in the service. She taught at elementary and middle schools in Michigan, managed military child care facilities overseas and stateside, and performed facilities management at the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, D.C.. She was community liaison officer at the American Embassy in Bonn, Germany, when Tom was the Assistant Naval Attaché (A-ALUSNA).. She also volunteered at the VA Hospital in Miami.”

“She also spent significant time in parenting activities, including the Brownie Scouts, organizing and fundraising for Moira’s soccer teams, and as Team Mother during Tong’s wrestling years. Tom felt the most important position Kathie ever held was stay-at-home Mom, which she enjoyed immensely for most of the past decade. Kathie was a generous giver to causes supporting mistreated and abandoned animals as well as environmental protection.”

“The Norfolk Chapter of the SPCA and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation were two organizations of importance to her and they would be appropriate recipients for memorial donations in Kathie’s honor. A beloved mother and wife, Kathie leaves behind a bereaved family and countless friends from a life of devotion and service to others.”

The official obit concludes with the words “She is profoundly missed.”

That is an understatement. I have heard bad news over the years, but this ranks with the saddest. Tom arranged a memorial service at the Joint Expeditionary Base (JEB) Little Creek/Fort Story Base Chapel on Friday, and attendance was large. Condolences may still be offered to the family at: www.hollomon-brown.com <http://www.hollomon-brown.com> .

The funeral will be at Clare, Michigan, on Monday. The little town is the Gateway to the North, smack in the center of the Lower Peninsula where the broad concrete span of I-75 slices through the sandy soil toward Macinaw. For a lot of us, Clare has always been the Irish capital of Michigan, with the big St. Patrick’s Day celebration. It goes along with the naming of the counties in the Northland for Ireland: Antrim, Roscommon, Clare, Emmet and Wexford.

For me, Clare is on the way to the little town above the bay where my heart is anchored. Kathie’s passing this sad week is a reminder of how suddenly we can all be called home.

Copyright 2010 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com
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