September 21, 2012: In memory of Kelly - Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog

I awoke this morning and logged onto to this blog to find the following message awaiting moderation:

“Anne Teldy’s lil sisAnne and I wrote this two weeks ago. All typos or mispellings are mine. I had hoped not to have to post this for some time, but sadly… Kelly Hurt, known on the Internet as Anne Teldy, passed away Thursday, September 20, 2012. She belonged to several discussion groups ranging in subject matter from books to size acceptance to her beloved Stargate Atlantis and made good friends through them. Those online friends rallied around Kelly when she announced on her TV.com blog her hospitalization and subsequent move to a nursing home. They sent a flood of cards and gifts, cheering her greatly during her worst times. Kelly’s favorite online activity was participating in the discussion at the blog of Stargate Atlantis writer/executive producer Joseph Mallozzi. Winning his “One Millionth Blog Visit” contest was the highlight of her life, she said, and she was nearly overwhelmed by the prizes: a Stargate SG-1 10th Anniversary watch and a character named after her on Stargate Atlantis. (Major Anne Teldy made her debut in the Fifth Season episode “Whispers”.) Kelly was preceded in death by her father Roy. Hurt. She is survived by her mother, Marlett Hurt of Newburgh; a brother Richard Hurt of Evansville; sisters Kathleen Blizzard and Kerry Siniard both of Chandler as well as nieces and nephew Heather Schoch, Tony Hurt and Leah Hurt (U.B.) of Tennesse; nieces Amy Blizzard, Kristina Orange, and Katlynn Orange all of Chandler. Funeral arrangements are pending at Alexander Funeral Home in Newburgh IN. In lieu of flowers, please send memorial contributions to the “Save Stargate Atlantis” Fund or the American Diabetes Association. Kelly wished to express her especial gratitude to Sparkle and Puppet of Madison WI as well as to Joseph Mallozzi and his blog regulars (for the love of Beckett, skgraff, das, paloosa, sulien, maggiemayday, sheryl, and everyone) for all their friendship and support during her illness.”

As many of you know, Kelly was a longtime reader of this blog and a passionate Stargate fan.  She’d been battling health issues for a while and it was only last week that we learned her condition had taken a turn for the worse.  The news prompted me to write an entry in which I offered an overview of Kelly’s interactions with our little online community – her posts, her milestone achievement of being the 1 000 000th visitor here (which won her a Stargate SG-1 10th anniversary watch), the fact that she had a character named after her internet pseudonym, Anne Teldy (September 15, 2012: Our Major Teldy! Days of Stargate Atlantis Past! Be All My Sins Remember’d!).  Although she was unwell, her comments were always positive and spirited.  Some of my favorites included:

“Am I the only person who, on first seeing deeinsouthafrica’s little avatar/icon/picture thingy thought it was some strange internal organ?”

“Your blog never fails to make me laugh and, considering my health problems, etc., that means more to me than I can say. And, since content of posts has nothing to do with winning, you may rest assured I am sincere. Thanks.”

“I’ve gotten my 22 year-old-niece hooked on Stargate Atlantis by letting her borrow my DVDs. She hadn’t finished Season 3 when this season started but had by the time SciFi Channel ran the all-day Atlantis marathon. We watched it together over the phone with her calling me every commercial break. (I had to change batteries in my cordless.  ) We watched tonight’s episode together, too.”

“As to the first 3 pictures: I’m sorry, but that looks like an Asgard sex doll which makes Mr. Gero’s expression rather… uhm… creepy.” (January 15, 2008)

“Dear Cookie Monster, Thank you so much for your email. Please let me know when the watch will be arriving so that I can rent a forklift.”

“I honestly can’t believe this. Thanks, Mr. M.! (The cash is on its way. Tens and twenties like we agreed.) All kidding aside, this means more than I can possible convey in words. As I posted in one of my gabillion comments, I’m housebound and don’t have much to get excited about. Stargate Atlantis is the first thing in a long while that has “got my juices flowing” as my grandmother used to say. It also got me wanting to interact with others. The regular commenters here, as well as yourself, Mr. M., have such great senses of humor that I get a laugh every time I come to the blog. It made me want to be a part of it, something that’s been quite alien to me lately. Thank you again, Mr. M. Whether she’s eaten by space cows, killed by Sheppard in his stick-fighting episode, or dies of poor hygiene due to the lack of bathing facilities in Atlantis, I’m sure you’ll write a memorable death scene for my namesake. Anne Teldy PS: Please hold off shipping the watch until I get the floor reinforced.”

“I really wish I hadn’t looked up ‘Melena’. It was a beautiful name.”

“jan wrote: If there was a fast food fly-in at Pegasus galaxy, would they serve special dishes for Wraith like a ‘Crispy Colonel’ or a ‘McKay’? I’m thinking ‘Sheppard’s Pie’. “

“At last a bright spot in my imprisonment! A recently-hired nurse, John, is an SF fan! When he brings my 4 p.m. medicines (he uses a wheelbarrow  )Stargate Atlantis is on SciFi and he usually stays and chats a while. He’s excited about knowing the real Anne Teldy.”

 

“I have to agree with your stance. I have never considered fruit “dessert”. However, the staff here does. It seems to have to do with something called ‘nutrition’. The concept of ‘nutrition’ is apparently defined as “when food is good for you but does not taste good”. They cooks here excel at nutrition.”

“Thanks again to all the regulars sending cards and letters. It really brightens my day when the staffer brings those little reminders that somebody out there likes me.”

“I was moping around in emotional misery this morning when the staffer came in with the mail. “You have a box!” she said in that annoyingly chipper voice of hers. After she left, I opened it to reveal manna direct from Heaven (or, in this case, Amazon.com) in the form of books — The Android’s Dreamand The Blade Itself — sent by Sylvia (skgraff) with the beginning discussion dates for each noted.”

“Mr. M, I again must ask for a blog dedication to honor one of your generous readers. Today, out of the blue, I received a box filled with CDs and a CD-player (batteries included!) from Paloosa. Thank you, Paloosa! I can’t even begin to tell you how much this means to me. Some of the CDs are definite keepers and I look forward to exploring the music on the others. And thank you to all who keep sending the spirit-lifting cards and letters. I’ve filled one bulletin board with them and am starting a second. They’re the first thing I see when I wake in the morning and they always make me smile.”

“The staffer woke me up this afternoon when she delivered a box with an air hole in it. It was from the Vermont Teddy Bear Company and contained my new teddy bear. She wears a white t-shirt with “Marines” in red on the front and “Major Anne Teldy” in black on the back. I sat rocking her and cried like a baby. (Of course, I cry like a baby quite often these days.) I can’t thank you enough for the gift.”

“A Personal Milestone: No Reply Needed; Skip if You Like Since I’ve always been an avid reader, people often ask me to recommend good books to them. In June of 1994, as an aide to memory, I began to write down every book I read. Once I finish it, I record the title and author along with notations as to who among my reading acquaintances might best enjoy it. I’m pleased to announce to all my friends that, after sixteen years, I have reached a personal milestone: as of this evening, Monday, the 5th of July, 2010, I have read 3,000 books! (This includes fiction and nonfiction, audiobooks and traditional, as well as rereads of favorite titles.) This works out to an average of 15.5 books per month. I’ve had three months in which I read 47 books, my personal best. Also, due to my poor health, I’ve had nine months in which I didn’t read a single book. I can’t actually choose a favorite, but my most reread books are Jane Austen’s six, J K Rowling’s seven, and Helene Hanff’s 84 Charing Cross Road. As for worst, I once read an SF novel, Vurt, for which I noted “recommend to worst enemies only”. Of course, I could have been having a bad day. “

Although I only knew her through the comments she posted to this blog, those posts, I thought, offered great insight into Kelly as a person, showing her to be warm, funny, an avid reader, and greatly appreciative of Stargate and her fellow fans.

She will be missed.

http://obits.dignitymemorial.com/dignity-memorial/obituary.aspx?n=Kelly-Hurt&lc=2685&pid=160014922&mid=5246891&locale=en-US

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/courierpress/obituary.aspx?n=Kelly-Hurt&pid=160016291#fbLoggedOut