Even though he’s no longer with her, Myron will always be the love of Gloria’s life, just like he has been for the last six decades.
“He kept me on my toes,” Gloria said, the smile evident in her voice. “He was just such a wonderful companion, and he was caring, and loving, and thoughtful. We just had a lot of fun…”
The two met on a blind date and then created a life together with their children in Livonia, in a house that was always filled with love and laughter, even when Myron signed on to Angela
Hospice Home Care. He passed in November 2020 after a few months on the program.
While the first year without Myron has been incredibly hard for Gloria, she’s found comfort through working with the grief care team at Angela Hospice and the memories she has from when Myron was in home care.
“He spent his last hours and took his last breath in the home that we built,” Gloria said. “That was very meaningful to me and made a difficult situation more
comforting…”
The house is still full of memories with him: photos, his model cars, the blanket he received from the Angela Hospice We Honor Veterans program.
Gloria said she can walk from room to room and still feel his presence.
“I’m not changing a thing,” Gloria said. “I’m comforted by all the things he loved, all the memories we created living in this house our whole married life.”
Their home was also always filled with music, and that continued while Myron was in hospice care, not only through the stereo always playing, but when Heather Dean, Angela Hospice Music Therapist would stop by.
The first time Heather was there, Gloria stepped out to run an errand and was shocked to hear that Myron had sung with her. Myron – who sang in high school, college, and with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra – sang with Heather, making it the first time in decades. Gloria told him she wanted to be there the next time he sang. Sadly, that never happened.
But during one of Myron’s last days Heather came back. She sang their wedding song, Nat King Cole’s “When I Fall in Love,” while Gloria held Myron’s hand.
“Myron was in the hospital bed in our living room, and I just sobbed… it just really was very heartfelt,” Gloria said.
All of those little touches – from knowing she would be able to talk with anyone in the Patient Support Center, no matter the time; to how well the nurses treated her and Myron – like they
were their own loved ones – made the entire experience a bit easier.
“It just makes me feel good that Myron was well taken care of, and now I’m being taken care of,” Gloria said.
Shortly after Myron passed, Gloria received a card that said, “Grief never ends, but it changes. It’s a passage, not a place to stay. Grief is not a sign of weakness, not a lack of faith, it is the price of love.”
That card now sits on her kitchen table with a photo of her and Myron.
“That’s my comfort,” Gloria said. “Every time I sit down at the kitchen table, I think that that’s such a wonderful phrase. Grief hurts… there’s no way that you can be prepared for what it gives you. I keep hearing you get through it, but you don’t get over it.”
