TBS 2-67 Cruisebook_Updated_7Jan23

wouldn’t grant her any additional time. She had great
support from her nursing school classmates and family.
Hospice was fantastic. She was at home and comfortable
for 10 months before passing away quietly In
her sleep. She did it her way and was the poster person
for how to do it with dignity. She was a huge presence
in her 5 grandkids' lives, a void I'm trying to fill.
It was a tough year. But sometimes when God creates a
void he also fills it. This is what happened for me. I
benefited from the great support that she had from her
Mercy Nurse School group. It was through her passing
that I met Pat, a long-time friend and classmate of
her’s at Mercy. Pat had lost her husband 3 years earlier
and knew what I was going through. Via phone
conversations and walks on the beach we realized that
we were brought together to fill a void in both of our
lives. Standing on the beach one evening watching the
sun disappear into the Pacific Ocean, we looked at each
other and asked "what are “Kay and Ream thinking?”
We were comfortable they would approve. At that moment
we acknowledged that we were brought together
to share our continued life together.
We confirmed our relationship on a 28-day trip to
Vietnam and Cambodia with TBS class 2-68. Traveling
with 8 other couples, we spent 2-weeks in VN I-Corps
making a counter-clockwise circle. Starting in Da Nang,
then to Hue, Leatherneck Square, Khe Sanh, A Shau
Valley, and finishing up back in Hue. We visited the
cultural sites associated with the emperors of the
Nguyen dynasty, along with the locations we knew as
Marble Mountain, Hill 55, The Citadel, Dong Ha, Con
Thien, Rock Pile, Camp Carroll & Hill 881N. Six couples
then flew to Siem Reap, Cambodia where we toured
Fourth Platoon
Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples. Followed by
an 8-day leisurely boat ride down the Tonle Sap and
Mekong rivers back to Vietnam, where we spent 2-days
in Saigon. Having weathered this escapade, we were
confident we could overcome any future hurdles.
Therefore, in an all-hands merging of both familys—5
children & 9 grandchildren—on the 19th of August
2017, Pat and I exchanged vows at Saint Patrick’s
Catholic Church in Carlsbad. Aloha shirts and flowered
dresses with sandal footwear as the appropriate UD.
We are closing out or second year of marriage, and realize
how lucky we are to have been brought together.
Life is great and we have learned to enjoy every minute
of it. You will have a chance to meet her during the reunion
and learn what a great person she is.
4‐13