Mountaineers take risks. The men and women who love them have to live with those risks—but often end up left alone. In 1999, Jennifer Lowe’s husband, Alex Lowe—widely considered one of the world’s best mountaineers—died tragically in an avalanche on the Himalayan mountain Shishapangma, leaving her alone to raise three sons.

While Jenni and her sons struggled with the gaping hole in their lives, Alex’s best friend and longtime climbing partner, Conrad Anker, was dealing with both the terrible loss, as well as his own guilt for having survived the same avalanche. To their own surprise, Jenni and Conrad gradually found solace in each other and married in 2001. Conrad is now the adoptive father of the three Lowe children.

Using letters and expedition notes, Jenni will talk about her experience: the loss of her first husband, the renewed lease on life she has found with her second, and the stakes she still has to live with. You can see her paintings at the Telluride Gallery of Fine Arts, and she will also be signing her book, Forget Me Not, at the Reading Frenzy.
- David Holbrooke