This is the page I maintained while Granny Pat was completing her journey…
Granny Pat left us and this was a page to keep people up to date on what was going on. Normally, we would have relied on her to carry out this important function, but she wasn’t available so we had to handle it another way.
Please forward this page to anybody you know who would be interested. And please return to check in on the latest news. Here are the questions she would be asking if the tables were turned.
What happened?
Last Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, Mom had a great afternoon. She finished off the latest sweater (a Christmas gift for Maggie) and had visited with Marcie about color-schemes for the condo that Marcie and I are moving into directly above them. She’d complained of a headache and had taken a couple aspirin. It turns out she was suffering a massive stroke and, while standing in the kitchen preparing dinner, sensed that something was terribly wrong. Her final thought was to head for Dad, who was sitting in the living room, and she almost made it into his arms. He could tell she was in trouble, caught her as she collapsed and laid her on the floor just as she went into the coma from which she never returned.
She went to University Hospital where a CT scan showed the extent of the problem and, as she vehemently requested, no effort was made to revive her as it was clear that she would have been seriously disabled if she survived at all. Medical efforts were limited to making her a comfortable as possible.
What’s the current state of affairs?
Sunday: She’s still at University Hospital, still resting comfortably always with at least one of us with her. We’re about as positive as can be that she will not regain consciousness before she dies — never say never, but the odds are incredibly long at this point.
Monday: She keeps going and going. But there are signs that she’s moving toward the end. She spends her time being easy, but it’s clear that she’s progressing through the stages of dying. Everything is a little harder for her today.
Tuesday: Not much to report — it’s been nice doing the “evening shift” here at U Hospital these last couple nights — our RN is named Lizzie and comes from India, which has been a really great connection with Mom.
Wednesday, November 28th, 2007
Granny Pat moved to the hospice around lunch time, just in time to partake of a glorious Fall afternoon in a room overlooking a small lake. She passed away just before 5pm.
What can I do to help? Probably one of the best things you could do right now is join the “Friends and Family of Pat O’Connor” group on Facebook that I just created. As we all know, Pat was a quintessential “social networking” type person long before that term was invented. I’m hoping that we can carry on that tradition a little longer by forming an online community of her friends and family. I think she’d love that. Here’s the link;
I should have thought of this years ago — it would have been great to let her start this herself, but like to many other things you always think there’s time. I think this would be a worthy successor to the Knitting Group, the Birthday Group, the Book Group and all those other gaggles of people she took so much pleasure in participating in. Please join. Please post your remembrances and pictures. Please invite others who knew her.
When’s the memorial service?
Saturday the 15th, at the Campus Club (click HERE for directions to the Campus Club, or click HERE for a Mapquest map) 2pm until we feel like we’re done. The formal festivities will precede a typical Pat O’Connor party. We’re going to raid her recipe box and learn how to bake all those cookies she used to make. More details to follow.
Any thoughts about a memoriam?
The Textile Center Pat O’Connor Library Endowment is being set up as I type this. Again, details are forthcoming…