My dad died at age 91
in May 2012 after eight years of struggling with Alzheimer’s. He and my
mom had an incredibly warm and loving marriage. With each new development
of the disease, my mom had trouble accepting the latest loss of skills.
He stopped driving long after he should have. She bought him an ID
bracelet long after he wandered off. She hired care givers long after
there were too many calls to the police to help pick him up after a fall.
In the end, he died peacefully at home with most of the family
surrounding him.
He was a violist with
the Cleveland Orchestra for more than 40 years, vehemently resisting
retirement. I think he was 77 when he retired. His love of music
was always foremost in his persona. Music was part of our family language.
He and my mom met in England during WWII where she was a refuge from
Czechoslovakia and he was playing clarinet in a dance band.
I, myself, became a
musician. I retired from my position as piccolo player with the Milwaukee
Symphony, a year ago. Running, for me, has been the greatest stress
reliever. I have done several marathons, but no marathon would be more
meaningful to me, than doing this one in memory of my dad. Although I
have to have injections in both knees due to cartilage loss, and sporting a few
years too many, I will mentally sing a little Mozart or Mendelssohn as I
jog/walk through 26.2 miles for Ed Ormond.
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