A daughter remembers Dad
9 May 2008 by Wendi Lewis under PeopleI received an email a few days ago from Nancy Wagner, in Jacksonville, Florida. She found our site through the Lung Cancer Alliance message and journal sites, over at Inspire.com. She wanted some mesothelioma awareness materials, like our awareness bracelets, to share with people around her, in memory of her father, Bill, who passed away with mesothelioma in 2004. Nancy was kind enough to share her Dad’s story with us:
My Dad, Bill [Hackett], was a master mechanic and boilermaker from the time he was 25 until he retired on disability at age 61. During this time he dismantled and rebuilt or built boilers to run some of the company’s largest factories and businesses. He started out at Maryland Ship Building and Dry Dock and then went on to become an independent contractor.
Over the years he was exposed to asbestos hundreds of times, not knowing back then that it would be what eventually claimed his life.
From the time he was retired due to this disability until his death in 2004, he suffered tremendously with breathing disorders from mesothelioma. He faced several surgeries and had to have fluid removed from his body numerous times. There were days he could hardly breathe at all, but he kept going. How I will never know.
Because he had been self employed, there was no insurance because he could not afford it. And social security did not pay very much on a monthly basis. Being a decorated WW II veteran, he was entitled to some treatment through the Veterans Administration.
My father was a very independent man and refused to give up or give in to anything that stopped him from doing what he wanted and going where he wanted. And he refused to be a burden on any one, especially his daughters. Until the week he died he continued to serve as Chaplain of the American Legion Post and made arrangements for former veterans’ funerals and assisted their families.
But he never told us about the cancer. He went to all of his chemo appointments and never told us anything. It wasn’t until after his death and the Death Certificate was issued did we know this is what took him. He died alone, 2 weeks before Christmas, in the house where we grew up.
My dad was truly a great man. I believe the reason he never told any of us was because we lost our Mom to cancer when she was 34 and he was 36 and he didn’t want us to have to face losing him to cancer, even though it was a different kind.
Almost 2 years after his death, I found out that I have stage IV lung cancer.
Cancer in any form is life threatening. The more people are aware of the signs and symptoms of cancer, the better off they will be. Annual checkups are vital. Don’t wait until it’s too late. Cancer caught early can be cured. The later the stage, the more intense the treatments and the less chance for remission.
I’d just like to thank Nancy for sharing her Dad’s personal story with us, and for helping to raise awareness and urge for early detection and research. God bless you.
View Comments to “A daughter remembers Dad”
Truly her dad is great man, not revealing because he don't want to be a burden to his daughters. Early detection may save the lives.
This story is heart breaking to say the least. I happened to find it when reasearching for bracelets for mesothelioma I just lost my father yesterday he had mesothelioma diagnosed last November. I am histerically crying by reading this story and once I am physically able to I want to work on continuing awareness for this disease. Something needs to change and AWARENESS needs to be made lives are being lost with the blink of an eye.
Jennifer Litaway (Fall River, MA.)
In such a town as Libby Mt, where three generations are wiped out all by the same thing. My children live close and see me everyday. My children also know what their fate in life is/will be because they too were born and raise in Libby Mt. My Parents and their generation are gone today and today we are buring our children.NO ONE from Libby Mt who learned the truth in 1999, as to why we are all sick and dying, one has to wonder in disbalief, as I have the last 11 years, when EPA came to Libby and Libby became for sale as a safe place to live and raise a family. 11 years now and hundreds more innocent people, entire families just like mine, are now sentenced to suffer till death by horrible means.Worst part of all this is this was done to us. No accident and the killings continue and the people will continue the be poisoned. And everyday, since 1999, and Libby became for sale as safe, I have told all who will listen to stay away from Libby Mt. Libby Mt is a death town.I say what should of been said in 1999. I say what should of been said in the 60 and 70 when EPA, OSHA and WR Grace tested Libby Tremolite asbestos on rats and the rats died of Mesothlioma.But killing millions then was not enough concern as we all know today as the latency period has become a reality…I pray for all the children for they must be the priority to protect…those we leave behind. I have one grandchild, a boy who will never ever breathe the air of Libby Mt.And I take to my grave that Libby killed 3 generations of my tree, they will not kill my forth.So so so sad huh…and we all share the same pain in our lives be it today or tomarrow, we spend the rest of our lives losing loved ones and careing for eachother. I want my children to have a life from watching me slowly die. I cry more for them and my wife than I do for myself.God Bless all of you out their, walking my walk and talking my talk. This is why we must educate eachother to the truth and what this stuff is and does.For the sake of those we leave behind. Amen.
In such a town as Libby Mt, where three generations are wiped out all by the same thing. My children live close and see me everyday. My children also know what their fate in life is/will be because they too were born and raise in Libby Mt. My Parents and their generation are gone today and today we are buring our children.NO ONE from Libby Mt who learned the truth in 1999, as to why we are all sick and dying, one has to wonder in disbalief, as I have the last 11 years, when EPA came to Libby and Libby became for sale as a safe place to live and raise a family. 11 years now and hundreds more innocent people, entire families just like mine, are now sentenced to suffer till death by horrible means.Worst part of all this is this was done to us. No accident and the killings continue and the people will continue the be poisoned. And everyday, since 1999, and Libby became for sale as safe, I have told all who will listen to stay away from Libby Mt. Libby Mt is a death town.I say what should of been said in 1999. I say what should of been said in the 60 and 70 when EPA, OSHA and WR Grace tested Libby Tremolite asbestos on rats and the rats died of Mesothlioma.But killing millions then was not enough concern as we all know today as the latency period has become a reality…I pray for all the children for they must be the priority to protect…those we leave behind. I have one grandchild, a boy who will never ever breathe the air of Libby Mt.And I take to my grave that Libby killed 3 generations of my tree, they will not kill my forth.So so so sad huh…and we all share the same pain in our lives be it today or tomarrow, we spend the rest of our lives losing loved ones and careing for eachother. I want my children to have a life from watching me slowly die. I cry more for them and my wife than I do for myself.God Bless all of you out their, walking my walk and talking my talk. This is why we must educate eachother to the truth and what this stuff is and does.For the sake of those we leave behind. Amen.
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