Divina's Namesake

When it came time to choose a name for our baby-to-be, we took our duty seriously. One of our favorites (Mark's find) was Iris, which means "rainbow" and so was used to name the colored part of the eye. Maybe next time. Actually, we sort of have a name picked for the next one, if a girl, but we aren't telling. I believe names should be significant and have a story. Divina's name has two stories. Her middle name, Marie, comes from my mother's step-grandmother, who raised her, a familial adoption. Divina's first name comes from a remarkable woman who Mark knows from his days at Skip Barber Racing School. While not an extremely close friend, she is one of the most charming, fascinating people we know. Mark has come to admire her a lot over the years, me too. I copied an article about her from Wikipedia, below.

"Divina Galica (born in Bushey Heath, near Watford, Hertfordshire, August 13, 1944) is an English member of the Order of the British Empire, best known for her Olympics career and her motorsport racing career. By age 18, she participated in her first Olympic games at Innsbruck 1964, competing in downhill skiing and the slalom. She also participated in the next two winter Olympics, at Grenoble 1968 and Sapporo 1972. Galica, a two-time captain of the British WomenÂ’s Olympic Ski Team, also briefly held the downhill skiing speed record (at 125 mph).

Divina Galica in Hesketh overalls during the 1978 Grand Prix season. Accepting an invitation to a celebrity auto race, Galica surprised everyone with her driving talent. She eventually took up motorsport as a second career, racing karts, sports cars, trucks, and even Formula One cars briefly for the Hesketh team. Her racing career has included stints in Formula Renault, Formula Vauxhall Lotus, and Formula 2.

Galica is now a senior vice president with Skip Barber Racing, managing both its driving school and racing series."

***Divina Galica, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Divina_Galica&oldid=71122326 (last visited August 24, 2006).

A funny story about Divina, Galica that is, or Divi, was when she was attending a meeting at Skip Barber Racing School. Mark was there, too. She was telling a story about how she missed her flight and that she only travels first class anyway. Everyone at the meeting started poking fun at her for that, when she replied "Oh, you boys just don't know how to live." That said it all. She's a quality person all the way and just happens to have a very cool name.