Liz Greenert was my younger sister. To you, she was a classmate, whom you may have lost touch with shortly after graduating. Let me share some of her life after high school and her tragic death.

Liz loved horseback riding, as some of you may know. She even took her horse to Kansas State, when she began college, studying to become a teacher. While at Kansas State, Liz met and married Terry Evans. After graduation, they moved to a farm near Fall River, Kansas, and Liz taught school in Fredonia, Kansas.

In September of 1977, while practicing running barrels for a saddle club show, Liz's horse slipped and fell, throwing Liz. She hit her head on a rock in the field, and Liz was killed instantly. It was a terrible shock and tragedy for the family.

While still in college, Liz and Terry had a daughter, named Melissa, who was born in 1976. Liz was a devoted wife and mother. Melissa was a beautiful child, who was born with a disability, Marfan Syndrome. Among the abnormalities, Melissa was born with club feet and hands turned inward. Melissa had the first surgeries on her hands and feet when she was only two months old.

Melissa was a determined child. She learned to walk, with braces on her legs. Eventually she had a steel rod inserted into her back to support her spine. While the doctors predicted that Melissa would not live to reach puberty, Melissa proved them wrong. Living to become the Homecoming Queen in high school, she also received a standing ovation at graduation. Although Melissa was confined to a wheel chair full-time by the end of high school, she was determined to continue her education. Melissa enrolled at Emporia State, majoring in education, hoping to become a teacher. The heart is one of the organs effected by Marfan Syndrome, and her heart failed one evening during the freshman year in college, in 1995.

Although Melissa lived in pain her entire life, she always had a smile on her face. Melissa was, and continues to be, an inspiration for many people.

Liz and Melissa are buried on a hill in the country outside of Fall River.

Becky (Greenert) Aguilar