Skip to main content

HomeCruiser_2024_09_Sep_Oct_Ursy

In Memoriam: Ursy Potter

By Jen Sass


Ursy Potter (1930-2024) was a longtime CCA member and together with her beloved departed husband, Carter Hearn (1933-2022), participated in many CCA events and trips over decades of involvement with our club. 


Ursy and Carter were both skilled paddlers and shared adventures with each other and with many CCA friends throughout the Potomac watershed and around the world. They opened their home to guests for dinners served on Ursy's uniquely beautiful pottery, music events, and porch parties on their expansive wooden deck.


Spending time with Ursy was always a mix of smart conversation and joyful exploration. She never seemed to get weary, always ready for another outing, another discussion, another chance to blend ideas and bond with old and new friends. Her energy was endless.


Ursy was a lifetime learner, and over her 94 years she spun her artistry into cooking, clothing, pottery, and photography. With each of these she infused her magic to make something completely new—something that had never before been seen or even thought of. She breathed imagination into life,  infusing life with even more imagination than most of us thought possible. Her life and her positivity were an inspiration to everyone who knew her. That was Ursy's magic. 

Ursy Potter

On Minnie's Island, 2024

(photo by Jen Sass)

On her 94th birthday, a small gathering of friends celebrated with Ursy on Minnie's Island in the Potomac River. Ursy stepped into a canoe to be taken to the Island, walked over the wooded paths and clambered over stones along with the rest of us. We ate cake, sang "Happy Birthday," toasted Ursy, and enjoyed each other's company. We wore colorful clothing and flowers in our hair, just like Ursy. 


So when Ursy passed away in July just a few weeks after her birthday party, at peace in her home in Mexico with loved ones and caregivers surrounding her, it was a terrible shock and a complete surprise. Ursy just seemed to be timeless. But she is gone, into the spirit world with her husband and best friend, Carter. And the world is a bit less colorful and a bit less magical for losing them. 


CCA sends our deepest condolences to Ursy's family and all her loved ones, and especially to her beautiful daughter Bonita Woods, who cared for Ursy with so much grace and love. 


Be kind, share joy, live your truth, and wear flowers in your hair.


For a remembrance of Ursy's husband Carter, see the Cruiser, May-June 2022.

Carter Hearn and Ursy Potter

With Carter (photo by Juliet Jacobsen Kastorff)