In memoriam: Melissa Varnavas
by Rebecca Hendren
It is with deep and profound sadness that I share the news that Melissa Varnavas has passed away following a long battle with cancer.
The ACDIS family is heartbroken and now has a space that can never be filled.
Melissa was the heart and soul of ACDIS. She joined the team in October 2008 to work closely with Brian Murphy in growing the fledgling association. She brought keen journalism skills to her job and cemented ACDIS’ expectations for quality reporting and scholarly publications. She had a unique ability to write succinct, useful education that incorporated her creativity and passion and resulted in connection, engagement, and a community that has grown to thousands around the country.
I could spend hours writing about all the work Melissa did over the years to provide education and grow the community. Many of you knew her well, through being interviewed for articles, working on conferences, or receiving advice in managing local chapters. Melissa had an uncanny ability to bring people together. She focused on education and service, but always with an eye to making it accessible, interesting, and entertaining.
I think what most of us will remember more than anything is her smile and her joy. She radiated joy in her personal life and through everything she touched with ACDIS. She had an inimitable style and a creative spark, and she understood that she could help others learn and connect through fun. Over the many, many conferences and events that she helped to organize, she injected fun and humor into everything she did. Do you remember:
- The conference that included a life size photo of Brian Murphy for people to find and photograph?
- How she hugged anyone she met also named Melissa and made it a point to keep up with them conference after conference?
- Her wonderful purple and orange day outfits?
- The on-air cocktails we drank during the reception at our first-ever virtual conference during the difficult early days of the pandemic?
- The purple and orange cupcakes and party hats to celebrate ACDIS’ 10th birthday in 2017?
- Her endless supply of puns and creative analogies in every article she wrote?
- How she organized the state pride days at the conferences that resulted in lobster hats (Maine) or horse heads (Kentucky) or Mardi Gras beads (Louisiana)?
Melissa lived more authentically than anyone else I know. She was always 100% Melissa. She loved deeply, laughed often, and was tangibly happy. She loved her husband and soulmate Chris, her family and was a doting aunt. She loved her neighborhood and community in Beverly, Massachusetts, and she loved her job. Every day at ACDIS was an act of service for her.
She was my friend and I miss her. Rest in purple Melissa. We will treasure you always.
If you would like to share memories, anecdotes, photos, or condolences for her family, please leave a message here. You can also email them directly to me at rhendren@acdis.org.
Editor's note: Hendren is the director of programming for ACDIS, based in Middleton, Massachusetts. Contact her at rhendren@acdis.org.