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A Wake for Terry will be held at the home of his brother Tim on June 12, 2009 at 6:00 PM. All Leopards are invited. 2112 E. Westminster Ave. SLC -- one street north of Dilworth Elementary.
We, Tim and Erika, want you all to know that Terry loved each and everyone of you, the class of '69. He lived a magical and incredible life until his late 30's. He played football with the best, he ran rivers through out the West, living in Ecuador (working on a shrimp farm), and milking spiders for NPS. Terry would want everyone to laugh out loud, tell great stories, whether they are totally true or not and realize that he is there in spirit... He might have been Honey Bear and the shortest McCarthy brother but he was always larger than life. Have a wonderful week-end together, it is a gift. Much love, Tim and Erika McCarthy
Looking Back
(Eulogy for Terrance McCarthy by John Adamson)
Terry Mac
Looking back
Class Achilles:
Frame of steel
Betrayed by knees
Not heel
Football fable
None as able
Offense smashing
Coulam crashing
But for the dancer—gentle, dashing
Then river running
Liver stunning
Rockwall climbing
Campfire rhyming
All those years in spider labs
With things that sting or bite
To risk their wrath
That purposed poison
Some life someday be saved might
Plumber of the Mystery
Zero to heaven in four-point-three
A legacy now history
Go with God and go with love
Your reunion is above
Goodbye Mac--
We’ll remember
Looking back
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Marv Curtis
My earliest memory of Terry is kindergarten at Uintah Elementary where Terry was already a fearsome competitor and athlete at age 5 in a bathroom showdown with Harry Nelson. My condolences to the McCarthy family for your loss. Marv CurtisMelinda Snow (Rich)
I well remember seeing Terry in his prime as he was running the Colorado River as a guide. He would come and visit us at Jacob Lake almost every two weeks as he was going to Lee's Ferry to take off down the river. Sometimes he would have lunch and we would sit and talk and sometimes he was in a huury to get there and would just stop and say hi. He talked of wanting to be a Marine Biologist and live by the water. Steve and I remember Terry with fondness. He liked to be thought of as a tough guy but really underneath it all was a soft and loving heart and a good friend. Our love and prayers are with you at this time....with love, Steve and Melinda Snow RichAnn Wilkinson (Coulam)
Written with deep gratitude to Adamson for linking me with McCarthy in his final days... allowing me to hear one more story from Terry...In March
we gathered to plan
our fortieth reunion.
Reconnecting with
almost forgotten friends.
Heartwarming, softly nostalgic.
Years disappeared-
It felt like coming home.
Then we learned
one tough but gentle friend
was suffering in a
self-imposed solitude.
We all longed to help and heal.
But before April ended
he was gone,
his earthly trials over.
Stunned by our friend's mortality.
Shocked by the briefness of fifty-eight years.
Secure in God's tender mercy
to release his struggling soul.
Knowing there will be another gathering,
an eventual heavenly reunion,
with all our fondest friends
who left us too soon.
John Workman
I remember Terry as a good hearted friend. He always said "Hi" in the hall at school and always was joking around. He was always fun to be with.This memory of Terry stays with me even to this day. I played basketball for East High and at the same time of the season the wrestling team was practicing in their room. I could never understand why anyone would want to be on the wrestling team if for no other reason than the smell of the wrestling room. The worst part was you had to grab a hold of another smelly, sweaty, slimmy wrestler and try and take him to the ground which meant you had to hug for long periods of time.
One day following basketball practice I was sitting on the floor and Terry came over and asked me if I wanted to wrestle. I said "Why would I want to wrestle with one of you sweaty slimmy guys." I was much taller than Terry and he was surprised that he had a difficult time dealing with me. Neither one of us gained the advantage over the other and he was genuinely surprised that he didn't take me out quickly.
It was this experience with Terry that drew us close as friends and we always enjoyed each others company.
He very much enjoyed the competition of sports. Something we shared in common. I am sad to hear of his passing and pray that the Lord will bring peace to his family. I shall miss his presence at our class reunion but will remember him as a great friend.
John C. Workman
Peggy Scott (Youngs)
May the road rise to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
May the sun shine upon your face
The rains fall soft upon your fields
And, until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.
An Irish Blessing
For Terry, a very special friend to me.
Peggy Scott Youngs
Patricia Rogers (Broadwell)
For our classmates that don't have access to his obit~Terrance Neil McCarthy "Honey Bear" Terry died unexpectedly in his sleep of a heart attack on April 27, 2009. He was born in Salt Lake City, UT on Nov. 13, 1950 to Jack and Bev McCarthy. He was an All State linebacker at East High School (Class of '69). He went on to play football for the U of U, then Westminster College, where he earned a B.S. degree in biology. With this knowledge he spent three years in Ecuador developing and implementing new technologies in shrimp farming. He then worked for 20 years as a research biologist for NPS Pharmaceuticals. He lived an amazing life. One of the things he was most proud of are his sons, Patrick and Christopher. Some of the best years of Terry's life were spent working as an expert boatman. He ran river trips through the Grand Canyon, Cataract Canyon, Westwater and on many other major rivers throughout the West. He LOVED being on the river. Combining humor and his large repertoire of river songs and poems with his excellent skills, he made every thrilling rapid and every night around the campfire a once in a lifetime experience for all those who were with him. True to the Irish heritage he was so proud of, he had a generous and loving heart, a wonderful wit, sense of humor and the gift of storytelling. Terry had a lifelong love for, and interest in all animals, reptiles and arachnids. After many years, he still mourned the loss of his three very best companions - his dogs, Lobo, Princess and Bear. Terry will be missed by all who knew him. He leaves behind his loving family: his two sons; brothers, Jim, Tim (Erika); sister, Margie "Gret"; nieces, Megan, Mary, Kate; nephew, Sam; extended family and many lifelong friends. A celebration of Terry's life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers please make a donation to the charity of your choice. Online condolences to the family may be sent at: www.holbrookmortuary.com In true Irish tradition, please raise a glass to Terry.
Eric Orme
John Adamson called last week and let me know about Terry and I've had a few days to put it all in some sort of jumbled perspective. Even though I haven't seen Terry in over 30 years he has often been on my mind. I think a personality as big as his has effect larger than its point of impact. I know he was a major force in my life from age 12 on. Funny, caustic, proud, jealous, fiecely competitive, his parts so complex that none will likely ever understand him. He was my friend, rival, teammate, nemesis. Pound for pound the best football player I've ever seen and he let me know all about it. I doubt I would have had my own personal success without his constant pressing and competing. He was the focal point of a sizeable portion of my Junior High and High School "social" development", for better and for worse. He wrote the book on what was to be done on Friday night for a good time, beyond and within the boundaries set forth by the law. "Capers" were his description of our indescretions, "dolls" were the beauties we all coveted. He showed me the "Bonzai pipe line" which we floated subterranean through the canal underneath 21st East (God, how did we survive?). "Hitching cars" after the Ward show was a traditional Winter Saturday night pasttime. Terry loved all sports and loved everything about sports.We played with or against one another from 7th grade on. He quoted the best yet description of how to hit a baseball - "you got to squat low, take a squirrel's aim and swiiiing parallel". He had so many tackles playing middle linebacker against Highland that we lost track. His heart so big that his tenuous knees were no limitation.The last time I saw Terry we were cross country skiing in Millcreek Canyon, probably 1980. The skiing was great, Terry was robust, healthy, and happy and very much in his element chiding me as a "liberal intellectual" with uncertain sexual preferences.It was OK, I know MacCarthy, we had talked to one another like this since we were 12 years old. In a way I was lucky, that was my last memory of Terry and it was good.
I know that Terry had his demons and his illnesses. I appreciate John Adamson and Larry Grobstein standing by Terry and doing their best to keep his spirits and hopes alive. Never has anyone had better friends.
My best wishes to all of Terry's family and friends, Eric Orme
Paul Matthews
I have such fond memories of Terry, Grobstein and Mike Hyde. Sitting outside the widows on second floor roofs discussing nothing and laughing at everything. I will miss is genuine love of people. I am sorry I was not with him at his passing.Dave Mortensen
I grew up literally 'around the corner' from Terry and have not only grade school, junior high and East High memories but neighborhood recollections, including one of Terry being the guy who stood up (rather effectively) to a bully even though he didn't know the victim at all.What an interesting life he led.