Her daughter, Laura, didn’t know how to contact me. So today, through a friend of mine and Carrie’s, I got word that Paula Lincoln died this past Saturday. Our last email correspondence in December spoke of her having congestive heart failure. She said, “It’s not as bad as it sounds.” Of course, she said that. This past March I received my annual birthday card from her. She never failed there. I didn’t send her one every year. She would have been 85 this fall.
Paula Lincoln was a great lady. A gifted math teacher, she was one of those who could look at calculus and not break into a sweat. I always appreciated those people. She taught for decades at North Harrison High School. She enjoyed teaching at North. She could do her job there. She was good at it.
My first official introduction with Mrs. Lincoln was when I was in the 9th grade. Our English teacher, Mrs. Kain, had a sub that day. After a message over the intercom inviting choir members to the gym, Mick Rutherford and I decided to join the choir that day. We got halfway down the hall. Paula looked at us and growled, “Get where you belong!” It sounded a great deal worse than that.
Over time, we got to know her better and appreciated her. She taught us how to play bridge. She worked high level math problems with my pals Mick and Kelly Samons. I just watched. She knew I was a writer. I was not a gifted math student. I had Paula for college algebra at IUS. She was tough on me. And she gave me more math confidence than I ever expected to find. When I signed up to take the National Teacher’s Exam, my math worried me. So much so, I registered for a second test before I got my results from the first one that I took in Terre Haute. I did fine on both of them, thanks to her.
Thankfully, we never lost touch. And for many years, we kept up with each other closer than we had the last fifteen or so. That’s life. We knew that. When we did catch up it was like we picked up where we left off. That’s great friendship.
My favorite birthday card from Paula was this one:
She knew my proclivity for kicking the football. I still have this card close.
When I graduated from college more than thirty years ago, she was there. She gave me a series of books. They too have always been close. She added a note to each one of them.
Paula was Catholic. We enjoyed religious speaks!
I enjoyed it all.
My dear wife, Carrie, took this picture in 2017. It was my 49th birthday. I didn’t expect to see anyone in this picture that day. Carrie got me. Thankfully, she got me. From left to right: Walt Lincoln, Paula Lincoln, me, Kelly Samons, Nancy Samons, and Jerry Brown.
It was an honor to be Paula’s friend. That is the greatest tribute and the greatest thanksgiving. I will miss her immensely.