Farewell, Miss Marcy

"Just yesterday morning, they let me know you were gone...I walked out this morning, and I wrote down this song. I just can't remember who to send it to." - James Taylor

Countless hearts collectively broke Friday morning, November 1, with the news that Atlanta Motor Speedway Promotion and Marketing Director Marcy Scott had passed away following a second bout with cancer. Though we knew the news, delivered by track president Ed Clark, was likely coming - probably sooner rather than later - it was still a blindside and a punch in the gut for those of us that held out hope and prayed nightly for a miraculous recovery until the very end.

I never met Miss Marcy in person, but she became a huge influence on me in the all-too-brief time I worked with her through my writing as SB Nation Atlanta's NASCAR writer. It didn't take very long for me to find out that if you were a writer in Georgia with the Atlanta Motor Speedway as a focal point of your work, a friendship with her was a huge asset. I found out that a friendship with her was a huge asset in life, as well.

After SBN eliminated their regional positions in early January, it was Marcy with whom I corresponded about the creation of this blog. She seemed intrigued by the idea of a site by an AMS lover for AMS lovers, and she asked me to pass along any comments from fans. Alas, as you see, the blog has been heavily neglected to this point. That will change now. Marcy believed in me as a writer even when I didn't, and fulfilling my plans for this site at its genesis will be my tribute to her.

My story is far, far from unique. The tributes that poured in after the news had set in Friday indicate as much. It is comforting to know that, in a way, Marcy will continue to live on through all the lives she touched.

It is even more comforting to know that, after the long, hard road she traveled, she'll never feel an ounce of pain again. She has raced under the Good Lord's checkered flag into the ultimate victory lane.

Still, as humans, one can't help but lament that she no longer walks among us. I deeply regret - and will as long as I live - that I never got to meet her and thank her in person for everything she did for me. The opportunity was there, for sure. See, I've never once mistaken myself for a media member, because frankly I am not. I'm just a huge, huge NASCAR fan who loves putting his thoughts on the sport into words and had a great opportunity to spend two seasons bringing the sport to fans in my beloved state. And yet, Marcy treated me as though I were a nationally-known scribe, with invitations to a variety of events surrounding the Speedway. I never went, as I feel strongly that people like myself don't belong among the actual media folks who worked through the ranks to become a respected reporter and made it their livelihood. Still, I wish I had let ego get the best of me just once, though, so that I could have met probably my greatest advocate as a writer outside of my mom.

It's so hard to balance being thankful that Marcy's ordeal is finally over and that she is in the Lord's company as I type these words with the selfish pity of wishing she were still with us. It shouldn't be, but it is. Ultimately, I guess we just have to look beyond our grief and realize that one's life isn't quantified by money or possessions but by love and the impact one has on others. By that score, Marcy lived one heck of a full life.

Farewell, Miss Marcy.