To Carrie Beth’s family and friends.

I was blessed to be just one of many threads in Carrie Beth’s extraordinary life. A life cut too short. As Carrie Beth’s former teacher during her early training at the KIPTOM Dance Center and through her advanced university studies at UB Theatre and Dance, and with UB’s Zodiaque Dance Company, it is challenging to process losing someone in their middle-aged years when they are in the full season of their talents, sharing wisdom, and finding purpose. It is a confusing grief, a heart-wrenching loss. As I reflect on the many social media posts on Carrie Beth, I see love and the profound impact of a truly remarkable woman. As an educator at heart, I am reminded that the true measure of a life is never its length, but its depth and how you wrap living in humanity.

Many years ago, a vibrant, eager, and serious-minded teen student entered the Kiptom Dance Center. I instinctively noticed the spark Carrie Beth possessed. She was already at that early age a sponge—a rare combination of intelligence, curiosity, and keen focus. Carrie Beth was glued to every insight and spoken word in class and connected fiercely to the movement presented. She soon followed me to UB and made a successful transition into advanced university theatre and dance studies and practice, maturing into a creative, critical thinker who could integrate proficient technique and artistry stamped with her unique identity. She was one of those students who instinctively knew how to capitalize on UB's faculty talent, especially with her mentor at UB, Lynne Kurdziel Formato. She passed through many doors with the UB faculty, leaving an indelible mark, and she soared once she left UB Theatre and Dance. And soar she did as a musician, painter, professional music theatre performer, and arts administrator.

All educators experience joys and pains through their journeys, but watching a student grow from that talented youth into a magnificent, accomplished adult artist is pure joy. Despite the insecurities and doubts all artists sometimes feel, Carrie Beth met the world with an open heart and a brilliant mind. It feels deeply unfair that her light that burned so brightly has been extinguished when so much was still left to give, create, and love. Being taken away at Middle age seems deeply unfair and should not be the end of a journey. We have to believe that the decades given to Carrie Beth, with all their joys and pains, were still filled with meaningful mountaintop and passionate experiences. To Carrie Beth’s children, family and friends, please know that the lessons she taught us through the way she lived will never fade. A great student, a gifted artist, never truly stops teaching us. Carrie Beth taught those around her to be curious, to excel with humility, and to treat others with unwavering decency.

You have finished your work here; you are remembered—my dear sweet Carrie Beth. You deserve to sing and dance with angels. Now ripple across heavenly golden stages. Love and blessings, Mr. Tom

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