Tribute to Geri Deskins
As many of you know, we lost a long time member of the WHO family on May 14th. Geri had requested privacy during her battle with cancer and I respected that wish. Now that she has passed I would like to share some of my memories of this special lady.
When Geri approached you there was always a smile on her face and a welcoming manner. She was tireless in working out in the arena as both a judge and timer. And she was a great cook! I remember the first time we went to Wenatchee for Interstate it was the year 2000. Not only was Interstate going on that weekend, but they were also having a huge roping event. This caused the camping to be VERY cramped with a couple feet between each rig. Heath and I fortunately (or unfortunately?) ended up with the door of our rig opening right up to Geri’s. We could not leave that area without Geri forcing us to have something to eat. That’s where the unfortunately question comes in, because I think we gained five to ten pounds that weekend, where as we usually would lose a couple pounds. And it was at that time that Geri noticed that I hate for my food to touch on my plate. If you’ve ever seen me at one of the potlucks you probably noticed my yellow cafeteria tray that has different sections. That was a special gift she got for me to help keep my food from touching. She didn’t say it all ends up in the same place or any of that nonsense I usually hear, she just accepted that quirk and did her part to help me. She also noticed that weekend that both Heath and I only eat one thing at a time and don’t mix our food. No criticism, just commented on it and accepted that too.
Geri was also my first pie in the face auction winner. She made sure to outbid everyone else just so she could have the pleasure of being to first person to put one of those delicious cream pies in my face. It wasn’t done with malice, but out of friendship and humor. And she shared in that pie when I hugged her back and she didn’t skip a beat.
One of the nicest things she ever did was approach me at a show and ask if Heath would like to start riding her great horse, Gus. I gladly accepted and Heath and Gus became a fantastic team. She allowed me to keep Gus at our place so we could take him to practices and the shows and after several years she sold him to us. Heath rode Gus for the rest of Gus’s riding life and was the last one to say goodbye to Gus when it was time for him to pass.
Geri was one of the Five Queens that also consisted of Chris, Sandi, Sandy and Leslie. They proudly wore their crowns and were the mother hens of the WHO family. For you newer members that never got to know Geri, I am sad that you didn’t get to experience this amazing lady with a heart huge enough to welcome everyone in. She has been missed these past couple of years as she fought her health battles and really missed now that she has left us. The sky night got a little brighter with her up there shining like the star she down on us and her family.
I will be posting this to the website, but since I don’t do Facebook I will ask Marilyn to post it as I do. PLEASE don’t hesitate to share your memories of this great lady and let everyone know how much she meant to us lucky enough to have known her.
Tully