Dan was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in July 2016. I did a little research and found that we would be lucky if he was still alive at Christmas. Well – Dan made it through Christmas, but as we entered 2017 he got much worse. He was admitted to the hospital in January days before his 49th birthday. On February 1st the decision was made to move him to hospice. Dan had not seen the facility and was concerned. He was transferred later in the day and he insisted that we show him around the facility. I think he had peace once he saw the facility, especially the Labyrinth, for he was a nature lover and loved being outside. Unfortunately, he did not live long enough to enjoy this space.
Once the hospice staff learned of his decline and that my children would be graduating in May from high school and eighth grade – they offered to hold a graduation ceremony in the facility. I was both surprised and honored that this could be done. We decided as a family that we would like to have this ceremony. In less than 24 hours this amazing staff contacted family, friends, school administrators and teachers and classmates. On February 2nd we had a full graduation ceremony. With speeches from both principals, diplomas, balloons and a graduation cake we celebrated my children.
