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July 13 Atlanta Memorial Service PlannedThere will be a memorial for Connie at Atlanta Unity on Sat., August 4th at 4:00 pm. The address is:
Atlanta Unity Church
3597 Parkway Lane
Norcross, GA 30092
770/441-0585
June 23 Until We Meet AgainIt hasn't yet begun to sink in .
Birthdays...
Easter...
Christmas...
the birth of your first Great-Grandchild...
all the life-events that are yet to come
...... how can these possibly be "celebrated" with your presence, laughter & wisdom so obviously missing?
I am feeling lost.
What will I do? What will we do?
Without your insight?
Without your instruction on "excruciatingly correct behavior"
 ?Connie.
My mother and sometimes father-figure; you taught me the value of tough love
My spiritual mentor; you taught me that being "Christian" really means being "Christ-like" and changed my world forever.
My cherished friend; a shining example of non-judgementalism
Connie.
Our very own "hotline to God".
Will you keep us on your "list"?
I'm sure hoping so!
Did I tell you often enough how much you meant to me?
or how much having you in my life made it a better place to be? You were the most important thing my Daddy ever did for me, you know!
Do you realize how much I love you??
How much I'll miss you?
I'll be okay, I promise for I know I'll see you again ...
...somewhere
..sometime
For a little while, though,
I'll indulge this awful sorrow,
this drought on my heart.
and the tears fall like rain ....
Until we meet again,
Your heart's child.
D
NAMASTE'! June 16 Memorial Service ScheduledThere will be a Memorial Service for Connie on Tuesday, June 19 @ 10am at the Church.Christ Church Unity2301 Central AveAugusta, GA 30904 (706) 738-2458
June 14 Visitation Scheduled for Monday
There will be a visitation on Monday from 5:00 – 7:00 at 1307 Georgia Avenue North Augusta
Thanks again for everything! Donna June 13 Arrangements Flowers Etc.Many, many thanks for all the prayers of support and loving thoughts being sent our way! To use Connie's words, they are "lifting me up" daily. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't bother getting out of bed! I can't imagine the prospect of life without Connie in it, yet!
The details of the Memorial Service can't be finalized until Rev. Sheryl returns this weekend. Same for publishing the full obituary. I'm hoping that we can schedule the service to be held at Christ Church Unity in Augusta towards the end of next week.
Particulars will be posted here in the event anything changes. June 12 GleaningsPrayers are requested for me and the extended family and friends of Connie Pettigrew who made her transition this morning. She was a true teacher, mentor and friend to many of us at Christ Church Unity in Augusta . In many ways her transition was like a graduation to a new level of energetic work. Cindy Grzybowski offered this wonderful send up this morning
‘Just to let you know Connie graduated this morning at 2:10am. . .Connie we see you now as you truly are- a message of light and love from God... Thank you for blessing us with your physical presence and laughter... Best of everything on your next adventure!!’ ~ Cindy Love and Light "Do all the good that you can, in all the ways you can, for as long as ever you can. . ." ~ Path of the Healer by Angeles Arrien, PhD ~ from the messages of Care for the Journey produced by Michael Stillwater and Gary Malkin
June 11 Graduation DayConnie passed away peacefully in her sleep at 2:10 this morning, exactly one week before what would have been her 68th birthday. For those hearing this news for the first time by way of the Blog, I sincerely apologize. There hasn't been enough time to take care of necessities and contact everyone personally. I hope you will understand.
There will be a preliminary obituary notice in tomorrow's Augusta Chronicle and in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Funeral arrangements are pending and will be included in the full obit. which will come later in the week.
Being extremely short on living space, I would like to ask that donations, in lieu of flowers, please be made to Christ Church Unity in Connie's honor.
June 01 FRIDAY 6/1Connie is supposed to be transferred to Beverly Manor tomorrow to begin physical therapy. The doctors following her case seem to feel that she is getting sufficient nutrition despite the "hunger strike" she appears, to the rest of us, to have taken up.
Does anyone else find it odd that they would recommend PT for someone that shows no signs of interest in getting up or walking? or eating?
Click below to start a discussion on the "Gemini Hippie Network" group forum:
May 29 TUESDAYPer Kay, the Social Worker assigned to Connie's case, I will not be in the official-information loop unless I can present a "Power of Attorney" to the hospital. In light of this, I have decided to supplement The Connie Blog with a forum-type MSN "group" here: http://groups.msn.com/TheGeminiHippieNetwork . This will allow anyone that might want to post the ability to do so and will hopefully produce a better source of relevant & current information than I have been able to do under my own as well as Connie's present set of circumstances.
To recap, what I've been told to date is this:
The only diagnosis made so far has been "dementia". They haven't yet been able to determine whether the cause is physical or psychological and they have not given up looking for answers.
Connie had been scheduled to be transferred to Beverly Manor for physical therapy, Thursday of last week but was kept over the long weekend for additional tests and an evaluation by an endocrinologist. I'm thankful for that. She continues to be generally unresponsive and with only short periods here and there when she'll be alert enough to answer a simple question or make short remarks about something that's going in the room or on TV. Very un-Connie-like and very scary!
May 23 TUESDAY 5/22Good Morning All & happy Hump-day!
Think I'm through being patient and polite with the hospital personnel today I intend to do whatever is necesssary to get across to them that in being Connie's actual and only next-of-kin, I am also the only one that can go through her massive collection of files/papers/etc. out in Trenton and determine the status of her financial affairs and do the practical things that need doing with relation to those.
I hope to have more pertinent info. her status later today. For those of you who may have heard that Connie's car was stolen, yesterday, it was not. One of her neighbors had been questioned the previous day by someone attempting to locate and reposess a vehicle in the neighborhood. When she realized she didn't see Connie's car in its usual spot in the driveway, she called the woman who owns the trailer, a close friend of ours, who then promptly left a message to that effect on my voice mail. Police were called to the scene and I raced back out to Trenton to meet them only to find the police officer and the neighbor conversing as they stood by Connie's little gray KIA!! It was in a wooded, shadier, area of the yard, out of the neighbor's line-of-sight, exactly where I had put it Sunday evening!?!
Unfortunately this little fiasco caused me to miss speaking with Dr. Deas, Connie's doctor (yet again!) re. the results of Monday's X-rays and other diagnostic tests and I haven't spoken with her since Thursday. The nurses seem to be "uninformed" (or are they not allowed to pass on information to a non-blood relative??) I left a message with the doctor's answering service imploring her to call me but she hasn't... I will try again this morning...
Fortunately, there was actually an upside to the whole silly incident... all parties involved (including Mr. Edgefield Cty. Police Officer) laughed our heads off with relief once the "crime" was solved -- ya gotta thank God for caring -albeit impulsive- neighbors and bizarre events that serve to do nothing more than relieve a little chronic tension! I feel like a "no-drama mama" in a soap opera world a lot but yesterday (I'm a tad embarrassed to share this) I was oddly grateful! May 21 MONDAY 5/21 Room 915 Happy Monday, all! You rock!! Your prayers and Melissa's wonderful energy work are making miracles and I am so thankful that Connie (& I by proxy) have the support of such a loving group of people! The first sound I heard coming from the room this morning was Connie in her old, familiar voice fussing away at the two young Physical Therapists trying to coax her into exercising her legs "just a little while longer." --and it had that tone in it (you know the one I mean?) I don't have the words to describe what a huge relief it was to hear that sound! I think she's baack, y'all! You should have seen the look I got when I told her about the old pics. I posted here. TeeHee...
One of the biggest challenges has been in not getting her appetite back and I'm glad to say she showed quite a bit more interest in eating today than she did last week. The fruit and walnut salad and milk shake from Mickey Ds didn't hurt, LOL! And she even at a little of the hospital lunch after that.
They took X-rays today to check her back in hopes of determining the cause of the chronic pain that put her in the bed and started this downward spiral in the first place. Hallelujiah for that! One of the doctors was listening, after all! if they can alleviate the pain she's suffering with it will be a major, major factor in how well she is from now on.
I hope to meet with the doctor in the morning and should find out what the plans are for moving her to a nursing home temporarily for more physical therapy and then home. YAY! Will keep you posted.
Thanks again for your prayers, visits, moral support etc., etc., etc. :-b! If anyone has questions, feel free to call (706) 373-8904 or email @ donna@cynaunltd.com. Email is probably quickest as the cell has a weak signal in the hospital.
Until tomorrow,
Donna May 19 FRIDAY MAY 18Good morning to all.
I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to post yesterday but it wasn't a great day. Connie was moved to Room 915 in preparation for being discharged but has yet to get up or walk but for a couple of tries and then with much help. Unlike her usual self, she is not talkative -when she does speak it's only to answer direct, very simple questions- additionally, she seems to be completely uninterested in getting up, eating or much of anything in general. Dr Deas says the tests they took turned up no physical problems relating to her condition/state-of-mind and so has consulted with a psychiatrist, Dr. Ken Jones, who will be seeing Connie daily.
I'm not certain if she knew who or where we were yesterday.
 I pleaded with her to try harder to help herself and stressed that it would help her to get home sooner. She appeared to listen but her expression said I was speaking in martian. I'm sure she didn't understand the words. With wanting to be there for her and to meet with the doctors unavoidable obligations are now piling up both at "home" and at Connie's place and I've been torn over how to best use my time. I keep missing the doctors -neither will commit to an am or pm time-frame- and it's been humanly impossible to be there all day every day with the distance. Now, in the past couple of days, I'm sensing Connie would rather I not be there as much. As odd as it sounds, having lived in separate states for many years, (Thank you, God for e-mail! :-) we've had plenty of discussions on the subject of staying in touch (or not) when we weren't feeling well -- we tend to share the unnerving (to most) preference for "hibernating" (vs "visiting") while nursing ourselves back to health and this being one of the very few things that seems genuinely Connie-like, I've decided to take the cue. I will still stop in breifly to check on her and then spend the bulk of the weekend taking care of a few urgent practical matters on this side of the River.
I'm waiting for a call from the doctors and will post after I speak to them. As it stands, they will see how the weekend goes and depending on what happens will determine a release date and location on Monday. Location will likely be a nursing home (at least temp.) and I've asked if they couldn't recommend one's with an emphasis on treating mental health. Suggestions? Is anyone familiar with Beverly Manor?
May 17 The Connie Blog IntroHello & welcome to "The Connie Blog" ! I'm Donna, Connie's Spiritual offspring/step-daughter and I'd like to start by offering sincerest thanks for the bounty of concern, prayers and well wishes coming in. "WOW! You guys are so AWESOME! Please know that I'm doing my best to personally return any and all calls, however, Connie being the popular girl she is, there have been so many that I'm having a little trouble keeping up! I suspect at least a few calls -- if one of these was yours, please accept my apologies -- may have been overlooked in the busyness of the past week and I've decided that a BLOG might be a more efficient way of getting the word out to more people. I took advantage of the optional guest book available so folks can post notes to her and will have a laptop there so she can read them daily. Will recap our anti-adventure below and by tomorrow should have particulars as to her progress, (and I am expecting progress :-) current whereabouts, etc. by tomorrow. Connie was admitted last Friday through the ER @ University Hospital after collapsing at home. After 12 hours, a barrage of redundant questions, assorted pokes, prods, scans, x-rays and the like, what was determined to be the official diagnosis was severe dehydration for which she was treated and slowly but steadily continues to recover from. new room #: 915 |
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