Summer A. Quimby

Quimby, Summer A. Passed away December 1, 2019 after a long battle with breast cancer at the age of 52 years. Loving mother of Anne (fiance Nathan Sippel) Mark, John Mark, and Brian Mark. Beloved daughter of David R. Quimby and Phyllis J. Quimby. Dear sister of Heather (David) Schuster, and Jennifer (Ben) Withers. Further survived by nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. Visitation on Saturday, December 7, from 10:00AM - 12:00PM at the funeral home chapel. Funeral service at 12:00PM. Interment private. In lieu of flowers, memorials to the Al-Anon Family Groups of Southeastern WI appreciated. www.alanon-wi.org Our girl Summer was a rock star in so many ways. Kind. Generous of talent, time, and heart. She had a wonderful sense of humor. If things got hard, she sought find the humor and laughter. And/or, she would sing and sing loudly. And sometimes she would sing off key because it’s funny and made it easier to laugh instead of cry. Summer was super smart. She graduated St. Norbert College with a double major in Math and Computer Science and earned a Masters degree from Purdue in Computer Science. It was at Purdue that she met her ex-husband Scott Mark and they married in the summer of 1992. Early in their marriage were blessed with 3 children, Anne, John, and Brian. Somehow Summer managed a balancing act of raising her family and doing amazing work. She worked at places where she could make a positive difference in people’s health and the world. Some of these places included Bayer Laboratories, writing and testing software for Glucometers. She also worked at Indiana University Health Proton Center developing software for lasers, apertures, and what she would call neat do-dads or thing-a-ma-jigs when talking to us less knowledgeable. But never in condescending way. She spoke in a kind and fun and inclusive way that made you want to listen and learn more. Summer was diligent, detailed oriented, and her work was top notch. People who worked with her found her a delight. The last project Summer created for Siemens is still running well, and the techs continue to love using it. Someone recently mentioned, “We are using the report formats that Summer designed. They are so well laid out and have garnered praise from the groups who release instruments. Summer had an innate ability to understand what users needed and was always willing to spend time with them and observe their work to make the programs and reports she produced not only meet their needs, but also reduce the amount of time they had to spend testing. Her reports have all received praise from managers who are responsible for approving the releases and all appreciated the additional clarity she added by her design and formatting skills.  Her work continues to impact the industry she so loved working in.” Her work ethic extended into her personal life as a volunteer at her kids’ schools, clubs and activities. Many will likely think of Summer as they purchase poinsettias this year and years to come. She and Scott mentored Mennonite Youth groups for years and kept in touch with many. She hoped to pass along a strong work ethic to her kids. Sometimes she would bring the kids along for the fun of weeding or planting with groups at the state fair. And sometimes it was fun. Working and helping is a time to connect to others. A time to talk and to laugh and to seed friendships. Some of Summer’s proudest moments were seeing her children move through milestones of youth. She was able to see all three graduate high school and move into the next stages of their lives. Anne graduated from University of Madison and was hired at PPD to work in testing and developement. John moved to Colorado to start life and work. Brian recently started at the University of Milwaukee. All three have ups and downs, as we all do, and continue to work hard. Their trials and tribulations of growing into adults and navigating through the world never affected her love or pride of them. Something she somewhat secretly enjoyed doing was imagining what her kids would go on to do, knowing well what they all have inside them to do. Summer wanted so much for her children and for all of us. She wanted to pass along her love of life, people, and the world. Life is often hard. But still good. People can be or do sucky things. They are human and mostly still good. Work hard, play hard. Spend time with people. Visit places. Learn languages. Get a passport. Use it. Step in the ocean from each coast if you can. Plan trips. Go with people you love. Get snow in your boots during a snowball fight. Pour loved ones hot cocoa or tea. Sit and talk. Laugh. Cry if you need to, it’s okay. Ask for help if you need to, that is okay too, people love you and want to help. Sing while doing the dishes. Admit when you’re wrong. People mess up. Forgive. Be strong. Know your worth. Light a candle. Help someone light their candle. Enjoy a sunrise. Embrace the sunset. Love some more. Let go.