More About Chuck

I wrote a blog about my friend, Chuck, during the first week of February.  Shortly after that his wife, Linda,  reached out via text to tell us that he had fallen and broken his hip in mid-January.  He was on the mend but a bit cranky.  She suggested that I contact him but said I should wait a couple of weeks

We reconnected on the phone in early March.  We talked about his health, his family, and did a bit of catching up.  He had loads to say about his two-year old grandson, Fin, and their time together. We agreed to speak again the following week.

The last time I visited with him in person was about four years ago.  We met for dinner in Orlando.  He had recently undergone a series of health setbacks, including radiation to his throat due to Agent Orange, but was recovering.  (He was a wartime military policeman in Vietnam.)  He brought his son, Joe, with him to dinner.  He spoke about Joe and his accomplishments throughout our time together.  He wasn’t bragging, but Ruth and I could tell he was very proud of his son.

Chuck and I lived together at a time when all of my other college friends had moved on to jobs that took them away from Kalamazoo.  I valued his friendship. We played softball together with a group of my fellow teachers, hosted parties in our apartment, doubled dated with girls that neither of us married, and shared a lot of good times.

We were living together when Ruth and I eloped.  He was the first person to know of our plans. Ruth and I lived with him for several weeks after we married.  I spoke about that time during my initial blogs. We were our own version of “Three’s Company”.

Shortly after that Chuck’s work took him the Kentucky.   I believe that’s where he met Linda.  They fell in love, married, and started a family of their own.  As we each raised our families, we grew apart.  He had his business and family commitments, and I had mine.  We communicated once a year to make payments and pay the taxes on the piece of Florida property  we purchased together.

The last time we spoke, we discussed selling the property.  We verbally divided the duties and agreed to reconnect the following week.  Two days later the world went on lockdown because of the coronavirus.  I didn’t tend to my side of the equation and didn’t hear from him.  I assumed that we’d finish the task after the current health crisis cleared a bit.

Ruth received another text from Linda last Tuesday.  Chuck had fallen again shortly after our conversation in March.  He was sent to the hospital with a broken femur.  His health declined, and they decided that he would return home to be attended by Hospice.  A hospital bed arrived on Monday and was ready for him to come home the following morning.  Chuck passed at 2:45 a.m. on Tuesday and didn’t make it home.   He, like everyone confined in a hospital these days, died alone.

Each time I post a blog the previous blog slides down the page on my list.  Its worked that way for the 253 blogs I’ve posted.  For some unknown reason, the blog I wrote about “Chuck”  in February  has stayed in the top position since its posting.  It’s the first thing I see when I publish each post.  Its been that way for almost three months.  I think that may be my way of subconsciously connecting with him over the past several weeks.

I’ve provided the link below in case you’d like to know more about my friend.

Chuck