Dear Editor:

I'd like to thank Joe Gelarden for his article on Lea Wait (Joe’s Journal, 8/22). I enjoyed her writing and, more importantly, I enjoyed her as a person.

When Maine's First Ship organized a ceremonial “laying of the keel” for Virginia in 2001 — Virginia is being built on the downtown Bath waterfront and is a reconstruction of a ship originally built in 1607 at the mouth of the Kennebec — someone invited Lea to speak. Then I was handed the responsibility for organizing the event. I didn't know her and wondered if she knew what she was getting into because  I worried that she knew nothing about the project. When we finally spoke, I needn't have worried. She knew exactly what we were looking for and did a beautiful job, speaking about the importance of local history. I was so pleased to have worked with her. While our paths never crossed since then, I always expected to invite her to Virginia's launching next year. I will miss her.

Allison Hepler