Hello friends and family, 

As many of you know, dad was hit with a rough case of shingles. We knew there would be a chance that him getting sick with anything on top of his graft versus host disease might make things happen quickly. He had been doing exceptionally well for a guy who stopped treatment and chose hospice, but the shingles and his illness combined have proven to accelerate his end of life process. Because he had been so stable and so fully himself despite his suffering, this feels like a cruel stealing of the little time we had left with him. But of course, we don't call the shots. 

Shelly, myself and our families, dad's sisters and his closest friends are an around-the-clock vigil of love. We are all so terribly sad while we love him in the very best ways that we can. 

Dad had a very rough couple of days after spiking a fever with the shingles and is now bed bound and mostly unconscious. This morning Shelly and I shared some time with him as he woke up more lucid and had a little easier time getting some words out. We are relieved and grateful to have him connect with us in this way because he plummeted so fast we worried we had unknowingly had our "last conversations" with him. This morning was such a gift. 

In these last days, we are broken-hearted and in awe of all we've been through together. We are beyond grateful for our dad's grit and humor, his natural ability to love us so well, and so much more. 

Thank you all for your years of love and prayers. We love you.