In 2001, Rick and I lived in Edgewater, Maryland. Making the trip up north wasn’t as easy since we lived 10 hours away from the Detroit area. However, my dad had taken my Aunt Ariel back home as her last wish and we wanted to spend some time with them.
Ariel had been diagnosed with cancer the year before, at age 80. She moved into a home we shared with my Dad and Brandon in order to receive better medical care in the metro-Detroit area. I was living in Maryland so I was only around one week a month. Dad became Ariel’s round the clock caretaker. He went beyond what any brother would do. After Ariel’s leg was amputated, he helped nurse her back to health. When the cancer returned, he honored her last request and moved with her to Huron Beach for her final months. She died in December 2001.
