July 2021

Hello everyone,

Welcome to July. I hope many of you can join us on Monday, July 5 at 12:30 for our welcome back picnic as well as our Zoom meeting with Steve O’Meara on July 10at 1:00 PM. And remember July 17 is our kickoff observing session focused on members. See you all then.

However once again, with much sadness, I need to inform you about the passing of one of our longtime Skyscraper members. Tina Huestis, Dave’s wife, passed away suddenly on June 5. Tina was a Skyscraper member for 36 years. She enjoyed observing with Dave and they travelled together to several Eclipse Expeditions. Tina was an institution at AstroAssembly, where she greeted all our guests as they came through the registration tent. Tina’s and Dave’s love of astronomy actually brought them together because they met while working at the Hayden Planetarium in Boston. She was also an accomplished bird watcher so she and Dave also traveled on birding trips. Tina will most be missed for her caring and loving disposition and selflessness.

We attended Tina’s funeral mass at St. Eugene’s Church in Chepachet. I looked around as the processional began and I counted two dozen Skyscrapers in the congregation. Throughout the service I thought about the caring in our Skyscraper family and how so many of our members have a bond beyond astronomy. All of our new members are welcomed into this family.

Wishing everyone clear skies,

Steve