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Jamie Updates
Jamie lost her battle with cancer on November 14th,
2008. During her illness her daughter, Ellen Wingard, sent out regular updates
on her progress. The emails were a great way to communicate with all of those
who cared about Jamie. Ellen's last email is the first of this page.
11-14-08: It was our Lord Jesus himself who said, "Come to me,
all you who labor
and are burdened, and I will give you rest." These words are comforting
in our time of sadness, yet we are living with the peace of God which
passeth all understanding as Mom passed away early this morning. She
has now gone to a place of refreshment and everlasting blessedness.
She fought her battle with cancer in the ultimate Jamie way -
relentless, but Thy will be done - for we know the Lord has plans for
all of us and we know they are good as he gives us hope and a good
future. Mom is now our angel looking down on us and she will remain in
our hearts as an inspiration and source of love and unending kindness to
us all.
My cousin, Jennifer Catlin, describes Mom best in a poem that she wrote
her a couple of week ago. I have attached it.
God Bless and Love,
Ellen
Wonderful is She Who is as Radiant as the Beautiful Sea:
Aunt
Jamie
Wonderful people are placed on this earth as guiding stars;
that
blaze through the pages of so many people’s history,
And you
are one of those wonderful people in all of our lives.
You are
the essence and ingredients of the pureness and kindness of humanity
that God
wanted to be on this earth.
And we
have all been so blessed and thankful to have you
as a
Guiding Star that helps us all get so far.
Your
sweet and kind heart has always played a leading role in so many people’s lives,
and you
might not even know.
The
essence of our heart and soul twinkles in thousands of people’s eyes.
Sweet
and precious is your soul that has given all of us a gift
that is
more precious and wonderful than any money or gold.
Thank
you. Thank you from the bottom of our souls
for all
the things you have done for each and every one of us.
A Product of Love
by Jennifer Lynne Catlin
11-4-08: I know I have used the word roller coaster several
times over the past
couple of months, but I feel like the last week or so has been more of a
roller coaster than ever. Mom has had some really rough days with
nausea and weakness, but she's also had some unbelievable great days
including some awesome visits with friends and family. Unfortunately,
the weak days seem to be outnumbering the great days right now, but Mom
continues to outwit us all and make us smile and laugh at the most
awesome times! In the midst of her trials, she's still the most awesome
woman I've ever known!
Fear not, for we continue to grow nearer to God. We have found that it
is no small matter to grow nearer to God. It is worth all the trials we
have known. The heart of the Lord is over us and he is not satisfied
until he drives our souls into the protection of His love.
Mom and I read devotionals daily and we always include this wonderful
"Prayer for Today" - we love it and are uplifted by each time we read it:
Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace. Where there is hatred, let me
sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where
there is sadness, joy.
O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as
to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive it is in pardoning that we are
pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
I cannot thank each of you enough for all of your thoughts, actions and
prayers. We are so lucky in so many ways. Please continue your
prayers. They are working in so many ways. I ask today for prayers for
peace and courage for Mom and our family to deal with this horrible
disease. I also ask for prayers for Mom's caregivers - which doesn't
just mean nurses and sitters...it's "the village of so many that help
not just Mom, but our family, every day!"
Love,
Ellen
10-23-08: As y'all know Mom is at home and is enjoying being
there! She has had
some really good days and has been outside in the wheelchair and walked
on her walker. She is so strong and determined. She always talks about
how "we're going to beat this" and I know God is giving her strength
every day.
Being at home is definitely a bit more complicated, but we seem to be
falling into somewhat of a routine. We certainly aren't bored...every
day there is something new to learn! Mom still battles fevers, but it
is absolutely amazing how she bounces back. She is just one awesome lady.
Thank you all so much for all of your love, caring and prayers. It
truly uplifts us every minute of the day. We are so blessed and
thankful. I read in one of my devotional books yesterday "Do not focus
on the storm, but focus on the love that comes out of the storm." That
is how I feel about all of you - you have all expressed such love that
words cannot express our gratitude.
Today, I ask for prayers for her renewed strength and courage each day
to battle this horrible disease. Please pray that Mom's caregivers will
continue to be our little angels that take such great care of her and
help all of us take the anxiousness away!
Love,
Ellen
10-10-08: Mom's
home. I know Mom was a little anxious about the move, but as soon as we pulled
the car into the driveway yesterday, I think she realized
how happy she was to be home. We're all excited, but I really think
she's happier thank anyone. It is such a blessing that we are able to be
at home and I am anxious to see her improvements as she gets better rest
and enjoys her surroundings. We do have full time care which makes
everyone rest just a little bit easier. We have so many things and
people to be thankful for!
Thank you so much for everything. We are so thankful for your prayers.
We are so blessed to have you all and I am convinced that the power of
prayer is beyond our imagination and it has uplifted our entire family
with strength every day. Please pray for Mom's renewed strength,
courage and optimism as she faces the challenges of each day in her new,
but homey surroundings!
Love,
Ellen
10-6-08: Mom is
making progress every day and she really appreciates all the
calls, visits, prayers and letters. Our goal is for her to be able to do
daily routine functions on her own. She can stand up on her own, walk
with a walker and do exercises with her arms and legs. She's doing an
awesome job, but she thinks that she should be progressing
faster(imagine that!). That motivation will only get her better
quicker, but sometimes she lets it get her down a bit. She sort of
forgets that she was flat in the bed at Providence Hospital for 37 days!
One thing I didn't realize until last week is that she can have visitors
while she's doing therapy on the 2nd floor. If she's not in her room
and you visit, pop down to the 2nd floor and say hello. She appreciates
the encouragement.
Depending on her progress and exactly what she would like to accomplish
before she leaves Rotary, she may be leaving the end of this week to go
home. We aren't sure yet, but we'll let y'all know when we do.
We are so blessed and thankful for everything. Again, I ask for
prayers...please pray for her renewed strength, courage and optimism as
she faces the challenges of each day. It's amazing how many things we
take for granted that can change so quickly, but with her continued
tenacity and will she can regain.
Mom keeps saying "I don't understand how I can be so healthy one day and
so sick the next day! It just doesn't make sense. Why can't you get
rid of it as quick as you get it?" Lord only knows and we keep putting
our faith in God and turning our will and each day over to him. We are
so lucky in so many ways and we are truly graced with many so
blessings...so many from each of you!
Love,
Ellen
9-26-08: We've moved! Mom is now at the J. L.
Bedsole Rotary Rehabilitation
Hospital at Mobile Infirmary. She is in room 3825. She can receive
flowers, but she has asked that people send donations to McKemie Place
in lieu of flowers - what can I say? Once a devoted fundraiser, always
a devoted fundraiser. And she is tremendously devoted to McKemie Place.
It is a dream that Mom would love to see fully funded and they are
currently struggling with funding for the remainder of this year. I
have attached a flyer that she had prepared earlier this summer that
will give you a little additional information about this safe overnight
shelter for women.
In the mean time, Mom's doing better and she's going to be doing intense
physical therapy twice a day. She should be there for two weeks or
more. It's very exciting and we thank everyone so much for so many
thoughts and prayers. The address is 5 Infirmary Circle, Mobile, Alabama
36607. She loves all of the cards and letters she has received. We have
decorated her room with all of them and they are very uplifting.
Thanks so much, and once again I ask for prayers...please pray for
courage, renewed strength and energy for Mom to be able to progress as
quickly as possible with her physical and occupational therapy at the
Rotary Rehabilitation Hospital.
We are blessed by your love and the grace of God every day.
Love,
Ellen
9-22-08: Mom
seems to be turning a corner and SHE sends everyone many thanks for so many
cards, visits(especially out of town friends!!!), photographs,
acts of kindness, love and especially prayers!!!! We are so lucky to
have such wonderful friends and family - coupled with God's grace and
peace, we are truly being led through this crazy roller coaster.
We think we have her pain and her medications under control which we
think is making everything move forward better than ever. She is still
in the hospital, but she is able to do more physical therapy than she
has in almost a week and a half. She is once again beating everyone to
the crossword puzzle answers and yes, she does them in pen!
Today, I ask for your continued prayers(I'm sticking with asking for
specifics because it seems to be working!) for continued growth in her
appetite, strength to be more and more active, and again...continued
courage and patience to deal with this horrible disease.
Thank you and have a blessed day,
Ellen
9-15-08: It's been a long week, but we
continue to be uplifted by everyone's love
and thoughts and prayers. Mom is still in the hospital and still has a
great spirit and determination! Her quick wit pops up when you least
expect it and always at the perfect time. The hospital staff loves her.
She had one CNA, Alice, hugging her and telling her she loved her when
she was leaving this evening and one of the nurse assistants, Joanna,
called Mom's room yesterday (her off day) to check on Mom! They really
have been amazing.
We are evolving with Mom's pain and medications and trying to get a
happy medium. We have learned that there's a fine art to getting the
right balance with these two things - especially in relation to cancer.
She also has issues with swelling and pain in her legs and torso area
which affect her mobility. She does physical therapy with the hospital
staff daily. My younger brother, Wilson, has his own leg and feet
exercises that he works on with her multiple times daily. It takes a
village.
Today, we ask for specific prayers are for strength, mobility, and
again...continued courage and patience to deal with this horrible
disease. One day Mom said that she had always asked the Lord for more
patience, but she wished she didn't have to get it this way!!!! She
reminded us all to be careful for what we ask for.
Thanks so much for all of your thoughts and prayers! We are so blessed.
Love,
Ellen
9-08-08: Roller coaster is the best way to
describe the past several weeks! I
told Mom we should rename her room to "Six Flags over the 12th Floor" in
Executive Suite 1233, because we seem to have quite a roller coaster
thing going on!!! From thinking you're going home in a day or two, to a
new set of tests and back to bed rest. I think it's a combination of
cancer, chemotherapy, infections, her blood clot and everything else.
In general, she is getting better - lots of positive movement. It just
seems that there are multiple factors involved and as one moves forward,
another takes a step back, then another moves forward, etc.
The one thing that does remain constant is how lucky we are to have all
of you - our friends and family, a talented team of physicians and the
awesome staff at the hospital. Thanks so much for your prayers,
thoughts and everything else!
In my last e-mail, I asked for prayers for her platelets and to get rid
of the blood clot. 1 for 2 isn't bad! Her platelets are up
significantly...so you're prayers are definitely helping. Today, I'm
asking for specific prayers to help Mom gain more strength, to be able
to manage her pain as best as possible and to give her the continued
courage and patience to deal with this horrible disease. It's hard to
stay positive 150% of the time(like she always does) when you've been in
the hospital 18+ days. She sure does an awesome job of it though and
she's a wonderful role model for us all.
The chemotherapy has been put on hold until she has been out of the
hospital and feeling good for a week. We're hopeful that time will be
here before we know it.
Thanks so much for all of your thoughts and prayers!
Love,
Ellen
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