What I Have Learned Sitting Alongside My Treasured Friend in His Rocking Chair

This is our first month with this space being vacated by Rick Vaux. I was thinking really carefully about what we would do with this space to honor Rick. I thought about how we have come to know each other so much better during this past few month’s life journey. And, reflected on how if it were not for this EAA group – I would never have had this chance to know Rick and Cathy in the way I do now.

Over the past several months, I have told everyone what a significant role Rick has had in my family’s life. When my youngest son was only three years old, he say much at all. We took him to doctors and specialists. We were incredibly fearful about what might be interfering.

My dad was a member at the Museum of Flight and a retired engineer for King County. So, my dad often volunteered to take our son to his speech therapy appointments, extending a reward to the Museum of Flight to see the planes. That is where we first met Rick Vaux.

(what I have learned sitting alongside my treasured friend in his rocking chair continued) On one trip, my dad purchased our son a t-shirt with an airplane on it. My son went to his appointment that following week and showed the speech therapist (Myra) his new shirt. He said to Myra, “see my airplane”. I nearly cried when I heard him speak a complete sentence.

Myra encouraged us to continue engaging him on the topic of aviation. That meant that everything we did for to capture his interest evolved around aviation from age three to age nine. LOTS of trips to the Museum of Flight. LOTS of visits to see the most engaging Docent: Rick Vaux.

When I arrived in Sequim and attended the meeting with Erik, I immediately recognized Rick. I simply couldn’t figure out from where. Now we are talking about a 15 year gap. Somehow he still looked the same. Cathy is the one who gave me a clue.

Without delving too much into my own belief system, I have to say I truly feel that sometimes we come together again to try and be the person to someone else that there were to us.

Thank you Rick Vaux. For that child who grew to be an incredible man. For the children who you still connect with in the Build and Fly program. And for the generous spirit you are to all of us in this chapter. Thank you for sharing that wisdom from your rocking chair and all the years leading up to it. That gift certainly didn’t go unnoticed.

• The Petersen/Elliott/Nitz Families