Acorn says goodbye to a friend

There aren't enough people like Claire Vereczky Malis. Now there's one fewer. She died on Sunday at 83 and the sun isn't shining as brightly now that she's gone.

We met in the late '80s. The Acorn needed somebody who could rewrite press releases and take care of Datebook.

Claire had already worked here. She knew what to do.

She loved The Acorn, and for a newspaper, that's important. You either have journalism in your blood or you don't. Claire did. She was also amazingly fast and accurate. With most of us, it's one or the other.

She'll be missed for many reasons. Most important, Claire loved others and they loved her. Although she had strong Christian convictions, Claire wasn't pushy about her faith. She didn't try to "save" people who didn't want it.

But when somebody had a problem, Claire would pray. For whatever reason, her prayers seemed to be answered more than most. If you were sick or recuperating from surgery, you wanted Claire-and her prayers-on your side.

Claire was loved, too, for her strong sense of humor. She smiled and laughed a lot. She made people feel warm inside.

Claire loved her country and she wasn't shy about it. During World War II, Claire served in the WAVES. Although born in Cleveland, Claire was raised in a home where both English and Hungarian were spoken. She never lost track of her heritage. In the 1950s when Soviet tanks rolled into Hungary to suppress a popular uprising, Claire's heart and mind were with the Freedom Fighters.

Claire couldn't have her own children, so she loved everyone else's. Whenever she looked at a child, you could see the love in her eyes.

On Sun., Aug. 6, Claire had a stroke. Neither modern medicine nor prayers were enough. God decided to take her home three weeks later, last Sunday afternoon at a convalescent home in Pomona, only minutes away from where she had lived.

We will miss her because she was such a shining light in our lives. We must remember, too,

that it's a reason to celebrate when people like Claire pass away because they're not just in a better place, they're bound for paradise.

Come to think of it, the sun is actually shining brighter than ever. We're very fortunate. We got to know and love Claire Vereczky Malis.