Those Were the Days

Cyn Cyr and Steve Shute ham it up as Edith Bunker and the Fonz. Spellebration 2014. Photo courtesy of Consuelo Cota.

This week Literacy Outreach lost a friend. The impressions she made on us will never be forgotten. Volunteer, Steve Shute, summed it up best in his letter to the Spellebration crew. You will be missed Cyn.

To our Spellebration community:

Our dear friend, Cyn Cyr lost her battle with cancer last night.

She missed Spellebration 2017 with what she thought was pneumonia, then the news got worse.

See some great tributes on Facebook today.  She was my partner in crime – but I never knew quite what crimes were coming down.  I’m not much demure or reserved in my stream-of-consciousness patter, but she was simply dangerous with a live mike.

Her costumes were great, her energy endless, and when it was “suggested” that I play a woman character for Speller Helper, her skill with makeup over a rough & bearded face was (I have to say) downright FETCHING.  (My wife once walked up beside me in character and asked Mary Lou “where’s Steve?”)

Best ever was opening a Spellagravanza with her as Edith and the opening song for Archie Bunker:

Boy the way Glen Miller played 
Songs that made the hit parade. 
Guys like us we had it made, 
Those were the days. 

And you knew who you were then, 
Girls were girls and men were men, 
Mister we could use a man 
Like Herbert Hoover again. 

Didn’t need no welfare state, 
Everybody pulled his weight. 
Gee our old LaSalle ran great 
THOSE WERE THE DAYYYYYYYSSS!!                    << screechier the better

Yes, they were, My Friend.

Steven Shute