Dear Martha: An open letter to Martha Hart
I've decided to use this outlet to reach out to Dr. Martha Joan Hart because her personal privacy means more to her than conventional means of social media. Hart has understandably avoided such for the most part, aside from her work through the Owen Hart Foundation. I commend her for such. Overall, I felt compelled to write such a letter to send along my genuine praise, appreciation, respect, and admiration for how Martha has handled her family as well as herself following her husband, Owen Hart's, untimely death on May 23rd, 1999...
Dear Martha,
Firstly, I'd like to congratulate you on the absolute success of The Owen Hart Foundation in all ventures that its undertaken since its founding. Thanks to your dedicated efforts, a dark negative was turned into a bright positive and beyond. The Owen Hart Foundation gives so many people hope and a fighting chance at a prosperous life, not only within Calgary and the surrounding communities, but around the world. I applaud you and those affiliated for the diligent work and continuous efforts to make a real difference in people's lives, all in Owen's honor. The Owen Hart Foundation is something that you, your children, and those closest to you can be very, very proud of.
Secondly, I'd like to congratulate you on your educational successes to the ultimate level, in the fields of Social and Developmental Physiology. Today, many find it hard to not only shoot for, but reach and grab, for such stars. For a women in your situation to take on that challenge and see your goals all the way through, should be recognized as a testament of your character, drive, and dedication to what most (myself included) deem so important in life. This dedication to education is reflected in the OHF, as the scholarships offered to prospective students serve as amazingly promising starting points for so many, not only today, but far into the future. In life, knowledge is really the only thing that cannot be taken away from us as humans once acquired.
With all that said, the reason I've decided to write you now, April twenty-third, two-thousand and fifteen, is due to my overwhelming admiration for who the man your husband was and what Broken Harts: The Life and Death of Owen Hart has meant to me.
Owen has always held a special place in my heart. As a long-time wrestling fan, Owen always entertained me. It was the small mannerisms and faces that he'd make in his interviews and wrestling matches that I enjoyed the most. Owen and his brightness always permeated through the screen. Not to mention, he was a world-class professional wrestler and a true innovator. I am a great lover of his Japanese work as IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion and early WWF career, having classic battles with his older brother, Bret. As impressive and entertaining as Owen appeared on television, it was the man beyond the red light that drew me to him. His morals, values, humor, and respectfulness are all what made me truly admire your husband as a human being (long before my love for him as a performer). Owen was a man's man just trying to provide for his family. As a hopeful future father (years from now), I plan to instill the same values and morals in my children. I have long-decided that my first son will be named after Owen. Speaking of children, I wish all the best to both Oje and Athena, as they follow their fruitful life paths whichever way they may wind. Owen did what he had to do to provide a life that you and your family deserved, and deserves the ultimate respect for doing so. All this, you already know! In the same breath, I am saddened to think about all that Owen still had to offer you, the children, and the rest of the world.
With all that said, the reason I've decided to write you now, April twenty-third, two-thousand and fifteen, is due to my overwhelming admiration for who the man your husband was and what Broken Harts: The Life and Death of Owen Hart has meant to me.
Owen has always held a special place in my heart. As a long-time wrestling fan, Owen always entertained me. It was the small mannerisms and faces that he'd make in his interviews and wrestling matches that I enjoyed the most. Owen and his brightness always permeated through the screen. Not to mention, he was a world-class professional wrestler and a true innovator. I am a great lover of his Japanese work as IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion and early WWF career, having classic battles with his older brother, Bret. As impressive and entertaining as Owen appeared on television, it was the man beyond the red light that drew me to him. His morals, values, humor, and respectfulness are all what made me truly admire your husband as a human being (long before my love for him as a performer). Owen was a man's man just trying to provide for his family. As a hopeful future father (years from now), I plan to instill the same values and morals in my children. I have long-decided that my first son will be named after Owen. Speaking of children, I wish all the best to both Oje and Athena, as they follow their fruitful life paths whichever way they may wind. Owen did what he had to do to provide a life that you and your family deserved, and deserves the ultimate respect for doing so. All this, you already know! In the same breath, I am saddened to think about all that Owen still had to offer you, the children, and the rest of the world.
I often think of Owen almost in the same light as a soldier of the Vietnam War. Owen found himself fighting a war he had no personal investment in. Casualties were realized on both sides, all in the name of a valueless win. After all, the wrestling ratings war of the late nineteen nineties was a futile one, worth the life of nobody. Though Owen was doing what he had to do to provide, it wasn't worth his life. Much like the thousands of men who were killed in Vietnam, Owen did not die in vain. His legacy remains an untarnished one. Your husband will remain in my thoughts for the remainder of my life, serving as a great inspiration and motivator.
In fact, it's the respect and love I have for Owen that led me to your novel... And may I say, what a wonderful book for a wonderful man. During my readthrough, I was sad, proud, angry, confused, scared, happy, and relieved all at the same time. It's a fine accomplishment that you should be really proud of. I learned more about you, Owen, and the people you both loved than I would've ever learned otherwise. For that, I could never thank you enough. Truth be told, those who really got to personally know Owen are some of the people I envy the most! Nonetheless, I have gotten to know Owen to the best of my ability through other means.
Looking back at my reading of the piece, the insight provided by you on the events that surrounded Owen's death were more than stirring, namely chapter six. Since finishing, I have decided that it's the most uncomfortable and disheartening chapter of reading I have ever experienced. I dreaded reaching that point in the novel and never really recovered from it. It was the clarity, reality, and severity beyond the ink on those eighteen pages that will stay with me forever. I commend you for having the strength and will to write the novel (along with Eric Francis), especially that portion of it. I will always appreciate you putting forth the effort to get the real story out there, as Owen's wife, the only one who knew (and should tell) the actual story.
Without wanting to take up too much of your time, (as I probably could with my ramblings) by thanking you for being more than generous with your husband and sharing his light, humor, and talent with millions that loved him and continue to do so today. Of course, the love for Owen extends to you and your family. It always will. I'd also like to thank you for all you've done to not only honor Owen with a foundation made in his name, but to preserve his memory in the quality way you have. I applaud you for always trying to do right by the man that was unfairly taken from you. I can't even imagine the loss you've lived with. So, my heart and spirit go out to you, Martha. I'm proud of who you've become and congratulate you. You have risen from the ashes like a great and unwavering phoenix. I will continue to watch on warmly as you continue to expand your wings and soar onward and upward into the future.
All the best, always.
- Austin Skinner
In fact, it's the respect and love I have for Owen that led me to your novel... And may I say, what a wonderful book for a wonderful man. During my readthrough, I was sad, proud, angry, confused, scared, happy, and relieved all at the same time. It's a fine accomplishment that you should be really proud of. I learned more about you, Owen, and the people you both loved than I would've ever learned otherwise. For that, I could never thank you enough. Truth be told, those who really got to personally know Owen are some of the people I envy the most! Nonetheless, I have gotten to know Owen to the best of my ability through other means.
Looking back at my reading of the piece, the insight provided by you on the events that surrounded Owen's death were more than stirring, namely chapter six. Since finishing, I have decided that it's the most uncomfortable and disheartening chapter of reading I have ever experienced. I dreaded reaching that point in the novel and never really recovered from it. It was the clarity, reality, and severity beyond the ink on those eighteen pages that will stay with me forever. I commend you for having the strength and will to write the novel (along with Eric Francis), especially that portion of it. I will always appreciate you putting forth the effort to get the real story out there, as Owen's wife, the only one who knew (and should tell) the actual story.
Without wanting to take up too much of your time, (as I probably could with my ramblings) by thanking you for being more than generous with your husband and sharing his light, humor, and talent with millions that loved him and continue to do so today. Of course, the love for Owen extends to you and your family. It always will. I'd also like to thank you for all you've done to not only honor Owen with a foundation made in his name, but to preserve his memory in the quality way you have. I applaud you for always trying to do right by the man that was unfairly taken from you. I can't even imagine the loss you've lived with. So, my heart and spirit go out to you, Martha. I'm proud of who you've become and congratulate you. You have risen from the ashes like a great and unwavering phoenix. I will continue to watch on warmly as you continue to expand your wings and soar onward and upward into the future.
All the best, always.
- Austin Skinner
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