Homeward Bound
Dearest friends and family,
I'm writing from Lansdale Hospital where mom was admitted on Wednesday after suffering a subcutaneous brain hemorrhage. Mom has been mostly nonresponsive since the incident and began having seizures today. After a long conversation with Dr. Porter, we have all agreed that it is time to switch mom back into hospice mode. As of this afternoon, all antibiotics and transfusions of blood products was discontinued. Her body is already showing signs of dehydration and we are able to give her ativan and pain medication to keep her in a relaxed state. We decided that another transport to a hospice facility would be too traumatic for mom so she will remain at Lansdale Hospital.
While it is not easy to share such sad news with you all, I am relieved that mom is mostly comfortable and is unaware of where she is right now. After such a long battle, Mom deserves nothing more than a graceful exit. Friends, please hold on to your memories of Mom. She would not want anyone to see her like this as it is difficult to witness. I know many may wish to say goodbye, but we ask that you respect Mom's wishes to keep these last moments of her life private. We love you all, and can feel your prayers and thoughts lifting us up during this difficult time.
Love,
Jessie
posted by Jessie @ 4:29 PM
28 Comments:
Oh my.
(seeping)
My prayers are with you and your mom. I love her so.
Today's word:
Comfort
I rest in the comfort of Spirit's abundant love.
At times I may find myself struggling to find an answer to a problem in my life. I may search for a quick and easy solution or look for someone else to fix things for me. But rather than search outside myself, I choose to look within.
I breathe deeply. I relax. I realize that temporary outer conditions are not the truth of me. I release them, and as I let them go, I slowly and surely feel the presence of God. God has been here all along, right here inside me. I feel now the comfort, care and ever-present love. I know that all is well.
In any moment, no matter the circumstances, I can turn within to find that God is here as my steadfast guide on life's journey. I rest in the comfort of this awareness.
The Lord said to him, "Peace be to you; do not fear."--Judges 6:23
Dear Jessie,
Thank you for taking the time to keep us updated on Mom at such a difficult time for you all. My heart is breaking as I'm sure so many of your mom's friends and loved ones are also. I spoke with mom a little over a week ago and it was a great conversation. I was always thankful for the good days we shared and even the not so good days. She deserves to be sharing some peaceful time with her family--she loves you all so much. Please give Mom a kiss from me........
Many thoughts, prayers and love from the Koffel and Waters family to you all.
Love, Donna K.
(John sends his love as well)
Debbie and Teklits,
I have been praying so hard for Debbies peace and comfort since I heard the news yesterday. Sending the warmest thoughts your way; and hoping beyond all hope- that Debbie is comfortable and in no pain. Words cannot express how beautiful a woman your Mother is. I cannot stop crying and thinking about how special she is--- AND how much she cared for others. Always putting everyone else first- always had a nice, warm, comforting thought or hug to share when I needed advice etc and never judged me. Debbie is so awesome!!! I will be praying and thinking of her nonstop this weekend (...and on...)!!! LOVE YOU ALL! MEG, Matt, Matthew & Maggie Rose
.. Please make sure those doctors keep your mom pain free.. she is one of the most thoughtful, wonderful women i know and deserves all the comforts they can give her!!
Keeping all of you in my thoughts and prayes.. love. mdf
What a sad day....I hope she remains comfortable and at peace and you all can be there with her in this time. She is such a fighter then and now. I remember the numerous lunches at her house...what a great cook and hostess!!!! And of course my best memory is the best baths she gave the patients when we worked together....tell her for me how much I love her please...Brenda
Dear Jessie,
You are so brave and kind to be spending precious moments--during what must be a difficult and painful time for you and your family--to write this post updating family and friends of this dreaded turn of event. This is, indeed, very sad news. For over five years, your mom has been a modern medical pioneer, a miracle, and a wonderful inspiration to so many.
It is always our wish to be in our own homes during this time such as this. Yet, after spending all those years caring for so many others at the hospital in Lansdale, in a bittersweet way your mom is very much at home right there in her bed in that very same hospital. Hopefully, the medication she's receiving is working to keep her restful and comfortable.
Please know, Jessie, we’re holding you, your dad and your entire family in our hearts. We’ll continue to think of and pray for your mom and all of you in the days ahead.
With love,
Linda & Tim Radel and family
God bless your mother and your family. Your family is in my thoughts and prayers.
Colleen Handerhan
Jessie, thank you for giving us all this information, it cannot be easy for you to do so...you obviously have the courage of your mother. What a remarkable woman she is, loving, kind, courageous and oh so many more adjectives. I love you Mom like a sister, she will forever be in my heart. I pray for her peaceful journey to heaven, for she surely has a place there. I'm sure that my Mom & Dad and Joey are waiting with open arms to share the joy of peace and eternity.
I love you guys!!!
Patty
Keeping you all in my thoughts.
I am praying for peace for your mother and may all the love she gave to you all remain in your hearts forever. I worked with Debbie at the hospital for 18 years and she was so thoughtful and kind. She always talked about her family and how proud she was of all of you.
Linda
Thanks, Jessie, for sharing this painful news. You know how much we all love your mom and wish her the peace she hasn't seen in years. You will all be in our thoughts and prayers.
Today, March 19, is the Feast of St Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church, also the Patron of a Happy Death.
Praying for peace and everlasting life for our friend Debbie.
She lives in our hearts forever.
Dear jessie and joe Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your whole family. I worked with your mom for many years and learned alot from her. I will always cherish those times. love linda and Billy Sheets
May God hold you forever in the palm of His hand.
I love you Debbie.
Tessa
Dear Jessie,
So very sorry. Your Mom fought a good fight and gave her time with all of you. My prayers today are all for her and your family. She is a graceful soul that has changed many lives for the best. I will always be grateful that I was blessed to have known her. May you all find peace and comfort at this difficult time.
Love
Pam Kuntz
Thanks for letting us know about your mom. I am glad to hear she is not suffering with pain. I am sorry you have to go through this again so soon.Your mom really cheated death for a long time though. The last picture of her with her grandchildren was beautiful and probably summed up what was most important to Debbie.Family was the most important thing to her. I have an idea of how you must be feeling as my father was on hospice before he passed away. such mixed feelings. god bless all of you and I hope Debbie remains pain free.
Love,
Beach Betty
God Speed Debbie, it has been wonderful knowing you..thanks for all you brought to my life through your wonderful ability to show all of us, life is worth fighting for.....the angels can not wait anymore your seat awaits...... Lots of love, Visitor Alison....
Sad news. I've never been good with words or good byes. I still have pictures of Debby and Joe when we were high school kids. I've admired the fact that they kept there marriage together 40 years. Something I couldn't do. I pray God comforts Joe, Jessie and everyone who's live were touched by this family. And I know for sure God is going to welcome Debby into heaven with open arms, a big smile and the words, "well done my faithful servant." And I know I shouldn't cry, but I am. I love you guys.
Dear all,
I have Deb as well as you all in my prayers. jean
Jessie & Joe,
Our prayers are with you all. Our whole congregation is praying for you and wish you strength and peace during this time. Debbie is a very special and caring person, we have all been blessed to know her and wish her comfort these last days.
God bless you,
Sandra, John, Briana and Meagan
I knew something was wrong as they prayed for Debbie at church this morning. Reading your blog bought tears to my eyes. I hope that at tis time she is at peace and comfortable. It has been a long battle and she and all of you have been so strong through it all- but now it is in God's hands. She gave it her best fight - and all of you have been unbelievable. My thoughts and prayers are with her and all of you. I know she knows we are all there for her. I am so glad to be a friend of her and am thankful for all of your blogs to keep us all informed. Your family is amazing. Love Shelly
I was so saddened to hear this, but also glad to know that Debbie seems to be pain free and will finally be at peace. I want to echo everyone's already posted sentiments & reiterate what a special person your mom is. I am so lucky to have known her. She has been such an inspiration to so many. My warm thoughts & prayers are with the Teklits family now and always:)
Love
Bridget Fonash
Jessie, You are a dear, taking time to keep us all informed about your mother. So many of us love her. I had the chance to tell her I loved her very much a few weeks ago at HUP when I saw her in the chemo unit.
If she could speak now, she'd be worrying about everyone else's comfort.
That's what I found so remarkable about your mother, her generous spirit, remarkable grace, never-ending hope.
I am an AML survivor, by the grace of God, and your mother and I shared many stories about our journey these last few years.
I believe that God has a plan, always had a plan for all of us, His timing is perfect and He blessed all of us with Debbie's presence in our lives.
I pray for the "peace that passes understanding" for you and your dear family.
With love and prayers, Linda Mack
How to explain death?
A sick man turned to his doctor as he was preparing to leave the examination room and said,"Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me what lies on the other side"
Very quietly, the doctor said, 'I don't know.'
You don't know? You, a Christian man, do not know what is on the other side?'
The doctor was holding the handle of the door;
On the other side came a sound of scratching and whining;
And as he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room and leaped on him with an eager show of gladness.
Turning to the patient, the doctor said, “Did you notice my dog?
He's never been in this room before.
He didn't know what was inside.
He knew nothing except that his master was here, and when the door opened, he sprang in without fear.
I know little of what is on the other side of death,
But I do know one thing...
I know my Master is there and that is enough for me"
hey joe, jessie, and michael.............
thanx for letting us share in debbie's homecoming this way. we're so sorry and are holding you each in our hearts and prayers. we are all grateful for the gift of her in our lives and letting her go is hard. that is the greatest gift you can give her.
she is in our souls forever and we pray it is swift and easy.
grace,peace,love,hugs
tony & jill
Dear Joe, Jessie, Michael and family,
Thanks so much Jessie for your beautiful words. I can not tell you how very sad I am right now. My heart is so heavy. There is not a day that goes by that I do not think of her several times. Debbie is such an inspiration to so many of us over the last few years. She is truly an amazing person. I feel so very blessed to have her in my life. I enjoyed all our long talks on the beach over the years. I am having a difficult time composing my thoughts right now because I am so very sad. Please know that Debbie and all of you are in my thoughts and prayers at this most difficult time. I know that God and Joey are waiting with warm and open arms for her. Please give her a big kiss for me and tell her how very much I love her!
Love ya,
Chuck,Donna,Wyatt and Mackenzie
Joan and Earl Peters
Teklits family...I found out about Debbie's passing today and it's been on my mind all day--I googled her name because I was curious if she had been in an accident and found your beautiful blog.
I remember when she used to be a nurse at Corpus and I would go down and visit her...she would always be so nice to me, half the time I'm pretty sure she knew I was not sick, just wanted to visit and she would let me for a bit.
Jessie-I went back and read a bunch of the blog entries and you and your family did an amazing job documenting your mom's journey.
Coming from someone who has a mom in heaven, just know it is awesome to have someone pulling for you up there and smiling down while you raise your own children.
So sorry for your loss.
Lauren Kohler Naldzin
CCS class of 1996
So grateful Debbie had a peaceful, pain free ending of her journey. So glad she has Joey's ass to kick and then a face to hug. Joe, Jess, Walid, Mike and Laurie, you are in my thoughts and prayers. Maureen and Bob, I'm sorry for the loss of your wonderful friend.
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