CHINCOTEAGUE, Va. -- The Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company says the woman depicted in an iconic children's book set on Chincoteague Island, Maureen Beebe, has passed away.
On Saturday afternoon, the fire company confirmed on Facebook Beebe's passing.
The story of Maureen and her late brother Paul Beebe's attempt to raise a new foal into a wild horse is told in the children's novel, Misty of Chincoteague.
It's a story that book store owner Jane Richstein says changed Chincoteague forever.
"We still see people who come here in the summer who read Misty when they were seven years old and now they're 70 and that's on their bucket list to come and see where Misty grew up and lived and where the story took place," Richstein said.
The fire company paid homage to Maureen in their Facebook post saying quote, " She was so much more than the little girl depicted in the Misty book. She was a legend, a testament to good works, a heartfelt soul who cherished her independence and her family."
The Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company paid homage to the island's beloved icon, Maureen Beebe.
But those that knew Beebe say she didn't want the attention or the spotlight. Beebe was known around town as a very private person.
"You would pass her on the street and didn't even know it was her. So for those of us that knew her personally, what a treat it was to run into her at the dollar general or the grocery store and get a big hug and everything," Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company Public Information Officer Denise Bowden said.
Bowden says Beebe's life was much more than the series.
"She was a fixture of Chincoteague. Everybody knew her and she knew everybody," Roe Terry added.
Bowden says a scholarship for a Chincoteague High School senior is being put together in Beebe's name. Any donations can be sent to the Volunteer Fire Company.
