Lee Family Newsletter

This has been an eventful year for us, full of joys and sorrows. We began the year under a dual cloud: while still adjusting to the loss of Connie’s sister (Carol passed away 7/31/01), we learned that Donald's brother Richard was terminally ill. In fact, Richard spent Christmas 2001 in the hospital, so our extended family Christmas celebration was delayed until he returned home in January. Richard accepted the situation calmly and began making plans to live his remaining months fully and spend lots of time with his wife and four young children. The rest of us did a lot of worrying and praying while continuing our usual activities. Bethany returned to school in Dallas, Timothy continued his studies at the University of Minnesota and Andrew concentrated on wrapping up his senior year at St. Thomas Academy. Donald was working hard as always, and Connie was learning more than she wanted to know about probate law and death taxes, as she finished up the job of putting Carol's affairs in order.

February brought a celebration for the 21st birthday of our niece, Andrea (Carol's daughter). Bethany celebrated her 21st a month later.

In March Connie traveled to Phoenix to visit Donald’s sister Cristi. At the same time Bethany flew from Dallas to Phoenix for her spring break . We timed our visit to coincide with the arrival of the newest addition to Cristi’s family, baby Marisa. Another March milestone was the Minnesota State Boys Gymnastics Meet, which was the final competition of Andrew’s gymnastics career.

By the end of April, it was apparent that Richard's time was getting short. He and his wife Linda opened their home to family and friends 24 hours a day. We all took turns keeping him company. It was a privilege to spend time with him because of his kindness and good humor. Richard had always been an outgoing person and even during his illness he seemed more interested in other people than in himself. He passed away peacefully just after midnight on May 31st. We will never forget his sweet smile. We’re grateful for the hospice care that enabled him to spend his final days at home.

One of the blessings of small children is that they make it impossible to stay sad for long. Richard's children and their young cousins were a comfort to everyone during the weeks after his passing. Included in this group were baby Marisa and her three brothers; Cristi brought them up from Phoenix in late May and remained until the middle of July. It was good to have the family all together during that time of transition.

Meanwhile, in the Lee household, we were having a busy summer. Andrew graduated from high school on June 6th and spent the next several weekends attending lots of graduation parties. He took a summer job at the local McDonalds restaurant, and also worked as a free-lance computer consultant. We enjoyed having Bethany with us for the entire summer. She arrived home from Dallas in mid-May and stayed until the end of August. She found summer employment at a construction agency, but when the hours proved erratic, she switched jobs and spent the second half of the summer as assistant muralist for "Room With a View", her Grandma Dorothy's wall-painting business. Timothy spent the summer working at the same job he’d had during the school year: as a member of the U of M's Computer Science Department systems staff. His responsibilities there included web design, user support and administration of the department’s Macintosh machines. During the summer, Timothy moved out of the house he had shared with six other students and rented an apartment closer to the University. His new neighborhood is conveniently connected by a bike trail to the main campus. Another significant development for Timothy was that along about August he began spending a lot of time with a young lady named Bree.

As the summer drew to a close, Bethany returned to Dallas to begin her senior year as an art major specializing in sculpture. Timothy resumed classes at the U of M while continuing his computer science department job. On August 29th, Connie, Donald and Andrew headed southeastward by car to deliver Andrew to his new school: Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute, Indiana. After two pleasant days getting acquainted with the campus, we parents bid Andrew goodbye and drove north to Detroit to visit Donald's brother Bruce who wined and dined us most generously. We returned home by way of the Lake Michigan car ferry and scenic Wisconsin. Upon arriving home in Eagan, we began our new phase of life as "empty nesters". The biggest adjustment for Connie is that Andrew is no longer available to do the dishes and the laundry. All-in-all, things are going pretty well. The essential chores get done and meals are sometimes served on time. We are growing accustomed to the eery silence. Donald is keeping busy at Cray, Inc. Connie is still teaching Spanish classes. And we are maintaining our peculiar hobby of running the world's smallest I.S.P. (internet service provider) out of our basement.

We keep in touch with our out-of-town children via e-mail and phone calls. Andrew seems to like his new school very much. Bethany is working hard preparing her senior art show which will focus on “process art”. If any of you will be going to Dallas this spring, stop in at the University of Dallas and Bethany will be happy to take you on a guided tour of the show.

We had a very pleasant Thanksgiving, with Andrew home for an entire week. We ate a feast at the home of Donald’s sister Michal, then went to Connie’s parents’ for dessert. Bethany spent Thanksgiving in New York having a wonderful time with Aunt Anne, Uncle Ralph, the museums, theaters, parades, shopping opportunities and Thanksgiving dinner with the entire Desiderio extended family.

By the end of 2002, Timothy will be a college graduate. He'll complete his final course work just before Christmas. He plans to remain at the University as an employee for the foreseeable future.

This year again we are enjoying finding our mailbox filled with holiday greetings. We are thankful for the privilege of being able to send our news to our many caring friends. We wish you all a happy, peaceful holiday season.

-Connie, Donald, Timothy, Bethany & Andrew

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