MARTHA MONAHAN—1991

In her characteristic fashion, Aureet took me under her wing right from the start, and began to make me realize that I, too, could do a dissertation. How many times did she say to me, "If I can do it, so can you,"? Throughout that year and the next, Aureet and I spoke on the phone almost daily and she guided me through every step of the way…with her help and guidance everything moved along faster than I ever dreamed possible. When I completed my Final Orals in February 1989, I had Aureet to thank for a major contribution to that achievement.

Aureet's capacity to give of herself was truly amazing. She took me into her world and gave me a gift far beyond her invaluable assistance with pragmatics of the dissertation process, she helped me to develop the self-confidence I needed to do my dissertation…

Beyond the dissertation process, Aureet had a truly fun-loving spirit. Her appetite for life's enjoyments was equal to her capacity for achievement. I remember eating pizza with everything on it with her, going dancing in Boston, and enjoying a huge meal on a balcony on Bourbon Street in New Orleans where we presented our dissertations [at the 1989 American Psychological Association Convention].

…Aureet was a beautiful person in every sense of the word…

…without her constant support, advice and assistance, I would not have accomplished what I did. My dissertation was on empathy and in her scoring of my interviews and her relationship to me Aureet was always truly empathic.