Theresa Harper

Theresa Gaeta Harper

We met at St Francis University, freshman year English class. For several years we were good friends and then things changed. Theresa became my spouse and partner in life for 43 years. When thinking how to describe her, several words come to minds; loving, loyal, passionate, creative. She always held family in high regard, that was her Italian heritage, just as her namesake, her beloved “Gram” taught her. It was Gram that was the central love in her early life. Theresa was a dedicated friend. She would say her friends were her family. She would do anything for her friends and remembered them always with a thoughtful gesture or gift.

Theresa had a special place in her heart for the forgotten or mistreated. This was evident when she worked with heroin addicts at a methadone clinic, or with AIDS patients during the AIDS crisis. There she developed a “buddy program” that was adopted by clinics across the country. She did group and individual therapy with patients who had substance abuse issues and dual diagnosis. Her passion for social justice was evident in her very, very strong political views. She was not shy in sharing her thoughts of today’s political arena. She simply could not understand how people could mistreat or take advantage of one another. She lived the Lord’s message of love and saw Him in the dis-enfranchised.

If you knew Theresa, you knew her love of animals and nature. Her cats and Boston Terriers were truly her little family. My comfort is that she’s enjoying their company now. We would often sit at the table over looking our yard and see how many different birds we could spot. She got to know them all and insisted they be fed every day. Many times, she would give the planting of trees as a gift or adopt an animal at the zoo for a Christmas present.

Theresa was a creative soul. Her creativity was evident throughout her life. All the books, records and playbills were a result of her love of music, books and the theatre. Sometimes her creativity was expressed in big ways such as when she played guitar or sang in a band after college or her beautiful poetry. Often time, in just how she designed our life together.

If you knew Theresa, you knew a very special, one-of -a kind beautiful, generous soul. She will be greatly missed by all of us who loved her.

Kevin