The Second Ed #

Back in 2011, Mary and I went to Canada for my nephew Dalton’s wedding and our first stop was to the Misericordia Community Hospital to pickup my Mom. She was having anxietry attacks and largely related to the fact that her grandchildren were getting married and she was not sure what her purpose was any longer. It became clear that she could no longer live alone so shortly after the wedding suitable housing research was conducted to find a place where she could be placed.

She ended up in the Hillcrest Old Folks Home which my Aunt Irma was a maitrian there at one time. Anyway, there was a man there that was determined to get to know her better from the moment that she arrived. Now just before I continue with the details of this story I need to go back to something that my Dad said quite often. He was a Schulz through and through and very proud of his heritage. His words, “There are two kinds of people in this world. Those that are Schulz’s and those that want to be Schulz’s”

My Dad’s name was Edward Schulz and the man at the Hillcrest Home that had his eye on Mom from the moment she arrived was named Ed Schultz. Ha, same name just a little different spelling. He was an extremely nice man and treated Mom like a princess. He took such good care of her and expanded Mom’s world that was getting smaller. He was still able to drive and they took trips together and where always out and about. Of course this was all after they got married. That is also how Doug Schultz from Chapter 2 become my step brother. I went to School with Ed Schultz’s don and my brother Rodney went to school with one of this daughter’s Linda.

I no longer worried about Mom as I knew she was in good hands. Previous to this second Ed I would call my Mom pretty much every week just to make sure she was Okay. After Ed my calls became way less frequent because I knew she was okay and it was a lot harder to get a hold of her. She and Ed really filled up their lives with all kinds of activities and always on the go.

After 3 great years together and the happiest I had seen my Mom in years Ed’s health took a turn for the worst and he passed away December 7, 2016 at 90 years old. Mom’s health started to slowly deteriate after that. Started having to walk with a walker, then her eyes started playing tricks on her as she would start to see things that weren’t actually there. She was afraid of them in the beginning but then made peace with them and they soon became her constant companions.

The worst was when she started to loose her memories as dementia started to take hold. I often would have to wait for her to call me as then she would know who I was and it was a good day for her. These days became less and less. A couple of years before her passing, Mary and I drove down to see her. We drove our truck all the way from California and brought our two dogs with us. Mom was in the dining room and she did not recognize me until I told her I was Mary’s husband. Then the lights came on and she says “Don is that you?” It is funny how dementia works you never know what will make that path to recognition.

On January 31, 2025 my Mom passed away and was buried beside her Ed #1 at the Bethal cemetary that they had purchased together. In the end she was in so much pain all the time and was really ready to go.