The Debra Moran Story
As told by her Boyfriend Chet

As many of you know by now, we lost Debra Moran Tuesday evening, Jan 6th from a motorcycle accident that happened at around 6:30 PM. Though it was Debra’s fault, the accident was much more the result of a most unfortunate set of circumstances. I will explain what happened to the best that I can surmise after talking to the Police.

The accident occurred at the corner of Grove and Signal Butte where Debra was waiting to turn left onto Signal Butte. The driver of a Van, who had recently purchased a new motorcycle, stopped beside her to discuss her machine. This led to Debra attempting, as always, to recruit a new GWRRA member. After placing her bike on its side stand she was enthused, the driver later told the police, to be exchanging e-mails with a potential new member. During this time a vehicle had pulled up behind also waiting to turn left onto Signal Butte. Realizing that she was holding up traffic, she must have quickly prepared to move out onto Signal Butte.

Unfortunately, a slowing van approaching from the south that was preparing to turn right onto Grove was hiding a much faster but small pickup truck, also traveling from the South but in the lane nearest the center. Debra was such a cautious rider. I trust that she would have looked to her left, but when doing so apparently failed to see the small fast moving truck that, for an instant, would have been hidden by the van. When she pulled out across the path of the slowing van she was probably looking right for a clearing in the traffic coming from the north on the lane that she was about to enter. The small truck hit her broad side, possibly without her ever seeing it. When the ambulance arrived she had no heartbeat. They managed to revive it and air-evacked her to Scottsdale Osborn Hospital.

Because it was getting so late and she had not shown up for the staff meeting I eventually went in search for her. When finding the intersection blocked off and lit with what seemed like a million emergency strobes I approached in partial shock anxious to be told that the accident did not involve a motorcycle, and if so that the bike was not like mine and if so that the woman was not seriously hurt. The answers were all wrong! Though seriously hurt they felt, with modern procedures, that they could save her. I need not tell you the sense of shock and surreal that shook my being. But this was true even more about ten minutes later when an officer informed me that they had an update from the hospital and he needed to talk to me. Knowing what the gentleman was about to tell me I proceeded to set on the curb, to which the officer replied, go ahead and set down. The message this time was horribly wrong. Though they thought for a time that she may pull through, it was that they had lost Debra.

Around three years ago Debra came into our lives like a ray of Sunshine for which we aptly named her- our Sunshine Lady. No, her light came on more like the suddenness of lightening, and she since has showered us continually with a light that could radiate only from her most special personality and her exuberance for living. Now, just as suddenly as she came, Debra and the grace of her existence that we all share for a special time is gone.There will be a Memorial Service at someplace and at sometime where we can gather to begin the process of saying goodbye.

Chet