By, Carol Fisher-Linn
“Choose to be happy, happiness is a choice.” -Miguel Ruiz The Four Agreements
This writer had the opportunity to sit down with Anne Northrup (and husband, John). Allow me to introduce you to the multi-layered Anne Widger Northrup, daughter of Kate and Dr. David Widger and granddaughter of Jack and Elsie Widger of Ellicottville.
Anne straddled two communities growing up in Salamanca and spending time in Ellicottville. Her dad taught her to sail at age 7. She loved it and credits him for her adventurous spirit. Well into her teen years sailing gave them both opportunities to have precious one-on-one time; as a young woman, this skill equipped her and two friends for an ocean trek from Bermuda to Block Island. Turning her skill into college income, Anne taught windsurfing at Chautauqua Lake. Her mom, Kate, taught her to golf which provided her with one-on-one mom time, and a skill to now enjoy with friends and family. It is her mom she credits for her competitive genes.
Anne grew particularly animated when talking about her love for the sport of tennis. Again, she learned from her parents (see a pattern here, parents?) who played with Edna and Doc Northrup here in Ellicottville by the Town Hall (raise your hand if you remember the courts).
Drive past the Northrup homestead at the corner of Elizabeth Street and Route 242, and you might see several horses in the pasture. Again, family involvement played a role in forming this multi-talented young woman’s passions. Lillian Congdon, a family friend, encouraged 12-year-old Anne to learn to ride her horses so that she and Lillian could ride together. Thirty-two years ago, Anne acquired her own horses and now enjoys Natural Horsemanship and training.
Anne’s parents taught her to ski. She raced, became certified to teach both downhill and Telemark skiing, and taught at Holiday Valley. Anne and John love hiking, leading them to climb several 14,000’ peaks. Hiking also took her to Peru and a 55-mile trail around Machu Picchu. These mountain treks kept her feet on the ground, but put her head into the clouds, which was the place she most wanted to be since high school.
One day, thirty years ago, John asked Anne what she would most like to do. Without hesitating, she said “fly”. Within two weeks of that conversation, Anne had put in 10 hours of flight training and on June 2, 1992, she was ready to solo. When she was awarded her license, her instructor informed her that he was awarding her a license to cautiously “learn” for the rest of her life. Two years later, John got his wings and their life of adventures in the sky commenced.
Their explorations have taken them all over America, into Alaska, over mountains and oceans, filling their photo albums with sights many of us only dream of. Anne relates that one of the most exciting things that happened for her was when, in 1994, she was flying into LaGuardia and was instructed to take her place in the queue to land following The Concorde. One year, she and John flew commercial into Australia meeting up with some friends and renting planes. They flew all over the Outback for several weeks, watching herds of kangaroos and camels (yes, camels) from the air. They spent time in Coober Pedy, the old opal mining town where residents live underground (escaping 120-degree summers). In the 2500 hours Anne has logged, it would take a book to record all her/their adventures.
But all is not play. Suffice it to say that Anne and John have, characteristically, used their talents and resources to treat residents, friends, and kids to otherwise undreamed-of opportunities to put their heads into the clouds and perhaps be inspired to consider flying themselves. Along with their diverse business ventures, they generously share their abundance with the community in many quiet ways. To name only a few: the Northrups maintain Sunset Hill Cemetery and St. John’s Episcopal Church, and volunteer in assisting the Family Support for Ellicottville group. They and a partner bought the old Eddy’s Restaurant and leased it so that Katy’s Fly-In is available for visiting fliers when they land. The best news of all is that Ellicottville is blessed to have countless community members who positively impact our community in matters great and small. You see, every gesture, every good work, every kind word, every helping hand, every smile, contributes to the whole that is our community. To enlarge on the title quote from Anne’s FB page by Miguel Ruiz, “Be impeccable with my own words, not take things personally, not make assumptions, and always do my best.”