Obituary of Isabelle Haines Tate

Isabelle Haines Sprunt Tate, 46, of Waterville, died peacefully on January 25, 2012, at Maine General Hospital in Augusta, her husband Duncan by her side. Born December 29, 1965 in Lexington, Virginia, she was the daughter of Elise Givhan Sprunt (nee Miller) of Philadelphia and the late Rev. Dr. David Worth Sprunt, of Wilmington, North Carolina. The youngest of three children, Haines (as she was known to family and friends) grew up on a farm at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains, close to where the South and Maury rivers meet. This experience nurtured in her a life-long appreciation of the wonders, beauties, and solace of the natural world. After graduating from Westtown Quaker School (Philadelphia), Haines received a bachelor of arts with distinction from Oberlin College in 1988. She majored in English, with a special emphasis in creative writing and a minor in art history. An accomplished poet and painter, she pursued graduate work in poetry, receiving a master’s degree from Hollins University (Virginia) in 1991. In 1992, and at the age of twenty-six, Haines married Duncan Alasdair Tate of Leeds, England. The couple had been introduced through family and first met at the South River farm. Following her husband’s appointment to the physics faculty of Colby College that same year, Haines embraced Maine as her adopted land, celebrating its rhythms and seasons and marvels in both her writing and in her artwork. She was a contributing writer for Maine Times for several years; her poems also appeared in national journals such as Shenandoah, Carolina Quarterly, and The Southern Poetry Review. Poet, painter, printmaker, essayist, violinist, splendid cook, lover of books and gardens and a good cup of tea, Haines always found means to express creatively her deeply felt way of being in the world despite life’s inevitable challenges and limitations. During her five-year journey with breast cancer, Haines remained steadfast in life’s course, enjoying trips to the sea in summer and snowshoeing in winter, discovering new art forms at the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, and learning Italian. This fall, she took great joy in planning and planting a new flowerbed for the spring. With abiding fidelity to family, to friendship, and to the created and creative world, Haines lived life with uncommon clarity, dedication, and kindness. She loved greatly and was greatly loved and her presence among us will be deeply missed. In addition to her beloved husband Duncan, cherishing her life and memory are her mother Elise Sprunt of Rockbridge County, Virginia, sister Elise Sheffield, also of Rockbridge, brother David Sprunt, of Littleton, Colorado, sisters-in-law Fiona Tate and Sandra Sprunt, brother-in-law Eric Sheffield, parents-in-law Brian and Gladys Tate of Leeds, nieces Silvia and Laurel Sheffield and Elizabeth Ann Sprunt, and several aunts and uncles, and many cousins and friends. A family service and burial will be held February 4 in Lexington, Virginia, with a memorial gathering in Waterville planned for May. Haines’ family would like to thank with heartfelt sincerity the many caring people who walked with Haines in her long illness including many friends in Maine and beyond, and the skilled healthcare teams of the Harold Alfond Center for Cancer Care, the Maine General oncology ward, and HealthReach Hospice. Your kindnesses and considerations will never be forgotten. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to any of the following charitable organizations, with addresses found on their websites: The Harold Alfond Center for Cancer Care (in Augusta), Maine Audubon, or the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts (in Deer Isle).