Resource Developer Passes Away

The email missives came regularly, updating our staff about Ms. C's condition. She was diagnosed a couple of years ago with leukemia. Her sister, a good friend of mine had taken charge of the kaleidescope of medical procedures that require almost a medical degree to navigate. Persistent, my friend with no background in medicine, became an authority on every drug and treatment that her sister was facing. She took Ms. C along with her only child, back to her own home to care for her beloved sister.

Ms. C who owned her own business raised her son by herself after her brief marriage. I met her through my friend. A take-charge kind of woman, she was single, running a successful business, raising her son and owning her own home. An American dream... just not with a spouse.

Last year, during a remission, she moved back to her own home again to try to create some normalcy after many series of treatments. She felt good. Her need for independence after relying on so many, had taken a toll. We hired her to develop areas of our website. She thought it was cool to be able to surf the net and get paid for it.

Her work was thorough and complete. She learned very quickly. She relieved a burden on our staff. And as many of you know, how difficult it is to keep good researchers on task.

Then one day, her emails stopped. I knew she was struggling again. The work came to a grinding halt as we knew it wasn't any of the regular email excuses that we've all used about sending and receiving messages. I talked to my friend and she told me that Ms. C had relapsed, and the cancer was back.

This week, we received the email that we were dreading. Ms. C had talked to the family and her doctors asking for no more treatments and to be released from the hospital. She was ready, and wanted to go home. She was peaceful in this decision. And when the time came, her entire family, along with her priest, was there to bid her farewell. She died yesterday afternoon on a beautiful, sunny day in spring. We send our prayers to her son and her extended family.