Wishes
Fulfilled:Wishes
Fulfilled:
Bob Haverstick writes about some of the wishes NTL was able to make happen in October 2003:
Veteran Wants Original WWII Uniform to Wear when He Is Buried
Paul S. is a hospice patient and resides at an eastside nursing home. He told his hospice social worker that his wish was to have an original WWII uniform and to be buried with military honors. We contacted Lani and Fred Ropkey (they collect war memorabilia) and they referred us to a couple in Paris, KY who collect and sell vintage war uniforms. They donated the Ike Jacket, pants, and shirt (valued at $83.50). Chris Barnthouse, who was a Major in the Army, found a source for the garrison cap and Army tie. He also arranged for WWII re-enactors to visit Paul in the nursing home on Veteran's Day. Plus, there were other retired Army personnel there to present Veteran's Appreciation Pins to the other 30 Vets who live in the same nursing home as Paul. Paul's family attended the presentation, including a son who had also served his country in the US Army. It was a special day for Paul, and
WRTV, Channel 6 was there to capture the moment!
Cystic Fibrosis Patient Wants to Celebrate One More Birthday w/ Family in W VA
This wish was challenging. Thirty-eight year old Sheila B. wanted to go back to her homestead in West
Virginia to see her mom, dad and all her siblings one last time. She wanted to celebrate her 39th (and final) birthday with her family and plan her funeral arrangements at the same time. There were a lot of happy and sad tears for the week they spent together.
Initially, we called a dozen RV places to ask for a donation of an RV for 7-10 days; there were no takers. She couldn't fly because of all the hardware she is hooked up to just to allow her to breathe. In desperation, I called Jeff Pigeon at WIBC and told him my dilemma. Jeff has been our go-to-guy in the past when insurmountable hurdles were in the way of wishes being fulfilled, and he came through for us again. One of his faithful listeners called in to tell me of a new RV place in Edinburgh. I called the manager of the place and he didn't have the authority to grant such a request, but he gave me the names and cell numbers of the company owners. Ron and Thea Martin came through big time! They provided a Class A Gulfstream RV for 10 days (normally a $1,200 rental fee) for Sheila and Jeff (her husband) to make her reunion wish come true. Dick Wolfsie drove to Edinburgh the morning of their departure to tell the story to his
WISH-TV Channel 8 viewers. This was an amazing end-of-life wish that came together at the perfect time in Sheila's life; a week later and she wouldn't have been strong enough to make the journey.
NTL's only expense was a prepaid Visa Card for $151.50 for gas for the trip.
Centenarian Gets to Meet Birch Bayh and Present Him with Afghan She Crocheted
Pearlie B. turned 100 years old on October 14th. She is a lifelong Democrat and her original wish was to meet then Governor Frank O'Bannon. We arranged the meet and greet with the Governor, but as you know, he passed away while in Chicago. Pearlie was
distraugh, and her only surviving son asked us to arrange another meet and greet with one of her favorite Democrats, Birch Bayh. Ironically (there are no coincidences), the Honorable Birch Bayh was in Indy on October 24th to have a 100-year old building (Federal Court House) named after him. Pearlie met with him before the ceremony, gave him a
hug and presented him with an afghan she had crocheted. The next day, 200 family members and friends joined her to celebrate her 100 years on this earth.
Lady Stricken with Polio 50 Years Ago Goes Back to NYC for Sister's Wedding
At age 21, Loretta R. was stricken with Polio and she was four months pregnant. She actually delivered her daughter while in an iron lung. Fifty years later, she lives with that daughter in Ft. Wayne and her two sisters (ages 73 and 84) live back in Long Island, NY, where they all lived as kids. Loretta desperately wanted to get back to NYC to be in her 73-year old sister's wedding and to see her 84-year old sister who had just been placed in a nursing home with Alzheimer's. Loretta couldn't fly because she is on a ventilator 24/7. Her only means of transportation could be a van with a lift and she didn't have the funds to rent one; nor could she (or her daughter) drive the van.
A home care nurse learned of Loretta's wish and volunteered to go along to NYC to take care of her needs. The nurse's husband offered to be the designated driver. The missing piece of the puzzle to pull of this wish was the van with a lift.
We called all the places in Ft. Wayne (where Loretta lives) that rent or sell vans with lifts. The best price we could negotiate for fours days use, including the 1,500 miles to be driven, was $562.54. The amazing thing is that one of the people we talked to who owned several vans with lifts wanted to help fulfill this heart-rending wish. This fellow (who remains anonymous) couldn't let his special vans go beyond a 100-mile radius from Ft. Wayne for insurance purposes. When I called him to tell him the final cost of the van rental, he offered to underwrite the entire cost of the van rental from one of his competitors. Talk about a man with a huge heart! Plus, he said that he wants to help out with future wishes that originate in the Ft. Wayne area. What a benevolent man!
When I received copies of the wedding pictures, I could tell how much it meant to the 73-year old sister to have her "baby" sister there as her matron of honor. Plus, Loretta got to see her 84-year old sister twice and reconnected with some of her childhood friends. It was truly a magical time for Loretta, made possible by the kindness of her nurse, the nurse's husband, and the man with the check who covered the cost of the transportation. If any one of these key players had chosen not to befriend Loretta, her wish would never have come true. These kind of "minor miracle" wishes are what NTL is all about!