Cohousing-L Mailing List: Sad news from Liberty Village MD

[Martie Weatherly (martiew]

To our cohousing friends in the region and across the country:

I am sorry to have to let you know that our founder and close friend,
Merlin Porter-Borden died suddenly on Thursday Sept 16. There will be a
service celebrating his life at 2pm on Wed Sept 29 at the Lynfield Event
Complex on Rt 15 north of Frederick. We will have a potluck supper here
at Liberty Village after the service, probably around 5pm.

In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that contributions be made to
Liberty Village for the construction of a Common House. Directions to
Lynfield and mailing address for memorial contributions are below.

Merlin leaves a huge hole in our community and will be sorely missed.
Last night about 30 of us sat together and shared his impact on us and
our remembrances. We are here because of him, and we are not just a
community but are family. He poured his heart and soul into cohousing.
He was always passing on information from the cohousing listserve,
jostling the county, asking about our health and pressing us to move on.
Typically of Merlin, he had just finished fixing something for his
neighbor when he died.

Someone read a poem that we thought was Merlin: that he is not
presenting himself to the pearly gates but sliding in sideways saying
"That was a helluva ride!"

In peace,
Martie
(301)898-7654 or (301)538-6811 (cell)
martiew [at] earthlink.net

Directions to Lynfield:
        Go north on Rte 15 about 8 miles from Frederick, MD.    
        Turn left onto Hansonville Road, opposite the Resthaven Memorial 
Gardens.
        Lynfield is on the left. You cannot see it when you turn left, but you
would see it if you continued north on 15. It is handicapped accessible.

Directions from Frederick to Liberty Village:
From Rte 15 in Frederick:
        Go east on Rte 26, being sure to veer off to the right when 26 goes off
from Rte 194. Continue seven miles to Libertytown. Go across Rte 75 at
the one traffic light and continue 1/4 mile. The entrance to Liberty
Village is at the top of the hill on the right, opposite Rte 31 going to
Westminster. Follow the signs to parking.


Mailing address for memorial contributions:
Liberty Village Community Association
9137 Liberty Village Way
Union Bridge MD 21791