I first met Georgia Benkart when I was a first year graduate student, in my very first mathematical meeting, near Boston, in 1983, and I vividly remember how much impressed I was after her beautiful talk, so carefully prepared, with the right pace, some puns here and there, deep mathematics, … I was absolutely fascinated. After that, we met several times in workshops, or in short visits either in Zaragoza or in Madison. Years later, I spent a sabbatical leave in Madison. I went there with my family, and we all benefited from her kindness and attention to the details. She had many students and visitors at the time, but she was able to have time for all of us! One thing I remember deeply is her knack for asking the right questions, mathematical or otherwise. We joked that she had had the privilege of collaborating with Leduc (a former student of hers) and with myself: Elduque, as both names mean “the Duke”, in French and Spanish, respectively. That was an unforgettable year. My daughter, Eva, was 10 years old by the time. More recently, she went back to Wisconsin as a math graduate student. The last time I met Georgia in person was for Eva’s doctoral thesis defense. And the last time I saw her by zoom was on the occasion of my 60th birthday, one and a half years ago, with many other friends and colleagues who couldn’t meet in person because of the pandemic. She showed some old pictures of us, going back almost 40 years. It is painful to think that Georgia is gone, but we feel immensely fortunate to have shared so many moments. We will miss her. We will remember her.
