Jack lost his battle with SCC on Aug. 17. He was a tough battler until the end. His positive, optimistic attitude made this journey so much easier for me. He reminded his doctors many times that he would rather die from treatment than the cancer since he was a fighter. He went into Palliative Care on July 23. Palliative Care was o'k to him, but he would have nothing to do with Hospice. He would have run the lady from hospice out of the room if he had been able. He wrote on his white board, "I am not ready to die yet. I will beat the pneumonia and the infection and get in another round of radiation and chemo." Beating the two of them was not to be. The nurses said I could be thankful that it was the pneumonia that ended his life and not the tumor. In the end he was pain-free and at peace. This made his death so much easier for me.

We took him home to Iowa for the funeral and burial in the family plot with his parents, grandparents, great grandparents and great, great grandparents. Yes, it is a whole section of the cemetery. Our kids got to hear many stories of their dad's exploits back in his younger days. These stories meant a lot to them.

OCF was one of the places that I requested memorials be sent. I sure hope people support this great site. As I have told so many, when I needed information, I went to OCF. When I needed advise from someone who had been there and done that, this forum provided what I needed. When I was a bit in the dumps and needed support, I got more comfort from the people in this forum than I should have expected. Thank you. Thank you.

I am constantly on my soap box urging people to select a dental practice that conscientiously screens for oral cancer. I hope that as I get my head cleared and my thoughts back together I will have better ideas on how to send this message.

Appreciativly, Lowanne