Virginia Claire Buschmann

I think of you often dear friend, not just today but over the years remembering the many wonderful moments we shared. Catching you in your single graduate assistant room singing at the top of your lungs "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head". Or the night at Haynie when we made scrambled eggs and added wine for some liquid. Yuck! Or when you helped Dawg and me move into our Virginia Beach apartment and we had dinner overlooking the James River. It was a memorable evening! And then there...

It is New Years Eve, 2016, and I just received my annual holiday card to Claire back marked ANK: Attempted, Not Known. When I tried to look up a new address for Claire, online, I found this notice of her passing. I am so sorry to hear this news.

Claire had written that she had been ill, but II did not realize the extent of her illness.

I met Claire at Illinois State University when I was a freshman and she was a Haynie Hall resident assistant. I will always be grateful...

As Wendy says, I thought I had more time...

Claire was a mentor, a dear friend, the big sister I always wished I had! And an inspiration in so many ways. AND, if not for her and Toby, where would I be today? Certainly not with my life long partner, friend and spouse, "Dawg" Dan Shaffer, whom I met in Toby's Florida apartment one summer evening.
I am forever grateful that Claire was a part of my life and she'll forever have a very special place in my memories and heart.

What a perfect photo to remember Claire's inner beauty with. She was a kind and helpful soul, and a terrific athlete. We journeyed together on a few special occasions, and it was always fun and interesting. On our first trip to Canada, my leg was in a cast and this woman pushed me all over, uphill and down through the Butchart Gardens in a wheelchair. She also saved my life once, and I wish I could return the favor in kind, both metaphorically and literally. I will miss you Claire. ...

I thought I had all the time in the world to reconnect with Claire...how wrong was I. She is forever entwined with my Whitman College experience and memories.