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‘A bright light’: Vigil goers share memories of young pilot

By Pat Crossley 3 min read

In a small community, when a tragedy happens to one person, everyone joins in that grief, mourning with and comforting those affected by it.

The 200-plus people who gathered at Hughesville High School for a candlelight vigil for Maisie Bitler, whose life tragically ended before reaching her 18th birthday, were there to share how much she meant to them and also to let members of her family know that they were there for them.

Fellow classmates who played alongside her in the band joined adults who remembered her joyful spirit, describing her as "a kind soul who would do anything for anybody."

Maisie passed away on July Fourth when the airplane she was piloting crashed as it approached the William T. Piper Memorial Airport in Lock Haven.

"We all loved Maisie...she was a bright light to all of us. That's why we're here," said Valerie Cranmer, of Hughesville.

"She lit up the room when she walked in there. She had this magical light I can't even explain," Cranmer told the crowd.

A recent Hughesville High School graduate, Maisie had dreamed of being an airline pilot and was working towards that goal when her life was cut short.

"She had big dreams and those dreams are still living with all of us. She makes every one of us want to be a better person," Cranmer said.

"She's a flying angel looking down upon us," she added.

Maisie's "Nana," Kate Bowman, of Clinton County, shared memories of her granddaughter coming to visit her, relaxing on a swinging bed on her front porch with pillows and her books and exclaiming, "Nana, this is the life."

"She was a trip from the day she was born," Bowman said.

"She was a go-getter. She kept things in order. She has so many acquaintances, but she's like the rest of the family, her tribe is a little smaller, but it's dedicated to her," she said.

"I wish right now I could just bring her back and take her home with me," she sadly added.

Sporting Converse high top sneakers decorated with a skull and flowers -- shoes that belonged to Maisie -- Bowman noted that her granddaughter had about 30 pairs of the shoes.

"That's all she wore for years," Bowman said, adding that Maisie had worn them at her graduation even though students were told to wear high heels with their gowns.

Maisie, who had been involved with the Civil Air Patrol, working her way up the ranks, had garnered a strange nickname -- "toast" -- because of her unusual concept of what constitutes a snack.

Bowman explained that Maisie had been asked to provide a snack for the group and she showed up with a bread, a toaster, jam and peanut butter and proceeded to provide her idea of a snack -- toast.

Although the candlelight vigil was a solemn event, at one point the crowd joined members of the band in singing Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline," a song Maisie was known to break out singing when traveling with the band.

The culmination of the evening was the launching of a Chinese lantern which had been signed by some of the people attending the event -- a fitting gesture for the young pilot.

Starting at /week.