I first met Julie through some mutual friends at Pure Barre. We quickly started chatting regularly after class and, honestly, I just thought she was so cool…her kids were slightly older than mine, so she had all sorts of great mom wisdom, and I was fascinated with her decision to go back to school to become a social worker. I could not have been more excited to find out that Julie’s family was going to move onto Chatham Street! Once we were neighbors, Julie and I would take regular walks around the Muddy River. Her career change helped me find the bravery inside myself to go back to school to become a nurse. We loved chatting about the unique (and often humorous) experience of being in school as adults with much younger classmates and the challenges of our new professions. We also spent many walks talking about our children. Julie was so proud of being Ella and Devan’s mom and spoke about them with love and awe at the amazing people they were becoming. I always took mental notes because she seemed to have the cool mom thing down! She planned amazing trips, took them to music festivals and concerts (like Boston Calling and Bleachers!), and had strong relationships with her preteens/teens.
Later, in the most heartbreaking turn of events, our chats often turned to cancer. As an oncology nurse, I brought a unique understanding and tried to be a safe place for her to talk about her experience. Hearing her perspective as she dealt with her disease has informed my own nursing practice and has made me a better, more compassionate, and more empathetic nurse. I take that with me every day as I work with oncology patients. That is just one more small piece of the immense legacy that Julie has left.
For as long as I live on Chatham Street I will always look out my kitchen window and think about Julie walking Shubu down the street.