Update on Phil from Marilyn

Admins ... please move this to a different section if appropriate.


Hi , all.

It seems Phil has been extremely busy this last year, and now may he rest even more peacefully in peace. Love and respect to him and Marilyn, and all he leaves behind.

I just got this email from Marilyn, entitled "Phil's Year Long Journey".
... she writes:


Dear friends,

It has been a year and a month since Phil’s passing. During that time his corporeal being had an incredible 12-month journey. As you may recall, Phil donated his body to science. When he told me his plan, he said he “still had a lot to teach people”. His final arrangements included donating his body to the Anatomical Board of the State of Florida. When he left home on October 7, 2012 he was taken to a local funeral home where a “pre-embalming” procedure was performed that would slow down the decomposition process, but not destroy the internal organs and soft tissue. Then he was transported to the Anatomical Board in Ocala, FL where it was determined that he would be sent to the Florida Statue University College of Medicine in Tallahassee. During his tenure at FSU Med, as the director of the Anatomical Board put it, Phil was a “teacher” who taught 5 medical students all about anatomy and physiology. For you FSU fans, Phil was a “Seminole” for a brief period.

Today I received Phil’s cremains with a letter from the director of the Anatomical Board expressing gratitude for Phil’s worthwhile contribution to medical science. I spent quite a long time in the driveway talking with our mail carrier, who knew Phil well and stopped every day when he was sick asking if we needed anything. He clearly had as much trouble delivering his precious cargo as I did in receiving it. He told me that over the years he has delivered may cremains to funeral homes. But, this was the first time he delivered the cremains of someone he knew. We cried and hugged. Then he left me standing there hugging Phil’s cremains. I was very sad to enter this last chapter, but so very happy to have Phil home for a while. I will plan a burial at sea sometime in the next few months. I will hold back some of the cremains and scatter them at his memorial at Belden Hill Golf Club.

I have attached some photos of the memorial. They show his golfing buddies after a tournament this past August in his honor. Note the crazy shoelaces on some of the players. In October I visited the memorial with Phil’s mother and some of his siblings. We all said prayers into crazy shoelaces and hung them on the hydrangea tree with all the others where the wind will blow the prayers into the universe and Phil’s spirit will receive them as it zips through the universe.

As a side note, I asked the director of the Anatomical Board how donations have been. I was curious if they had too few or too many cadavers. That is when she told me about Phil’s “teaching” five med students. They prefer a one to one ratio, but there are so few donations the med students have to share. I mention this in case you or someone you know has an interest in making a donation of this type. I had not considered it before, but definitely am now. It is truly a wonderful way, even after death, to continue to make a contribution to something so worthwhile. Perhaps it is not for everyone, but the more we know about this opportunity and talk about it, the more donations the Anatomical Boards in all states across the country might receive.

I will let you know when we take Phil to his final resting place in the Gulf of Mexico.

Love to all,

Marilyn



https://skydrive.live.com/?cid=878f43677bd2d556&id=878F43677BD2D556!163&Bsrc=Photomail&Bpub=SDX.Photos&sff=1&authkey=!AB0piV0L2IpdRzs

 

Adios Uncle Phil!
See you soon.
Love,
-GH

 

Thank you, Zen.

 

... Just emailed Marilyn, let her know that her email is copied here and gave her this link.

 

Thanks zen.
I just stopped what I was doing and had a moment... I sure do miss him.

 

Rest easy, my friend.

Even in death you are a mensch.

 

How fitting. Phil was the kind of guy who wouldn't let little obstacles like dying get in the way of doing something important.

 

RIP phil,you crazy bastard

I miss you.

 

For what it's worth, this helped make my mind up even more so about donating my body to science once I'm gone.

Thank you, Phil.

 

Thank you for sharing this Zen.

I made this thread a sticky so it stays at the top for members to see.

 

I have planned for some time now to donate my body to science. I would like to help out as much as I can even after death. An MSy brain might be of interest to someone. I don't need it after I'm gone.

This update from Marilyn just sealed the deal. Definitely doing it now.

 

Donate to University of Maryland. They're doing extensive research on the human brain and need noodles from all sorts of people in order to further their knowledge.

The thing I found amusing is that there is a shortage of "normal" brains for research ventures.

 

I just imagined Uncle Phil making an "Abby Normal" joke.
--- merged: Nov 8, 2013 at 1:00 PM ---
For those of you who want to donate and want to learn more....How to Donate Your Body to Science: 5 Steps (with Pictures)

It's wikihow, but it's a good starting point.

Sorry @borla it doesn't look like you can be an organ donor AND a full body donor. I'd look into it more though.

Also, you can't weigh more than 200lbs. The title of this article made me giggle. I feel bad for giggling. Donating your body to science? Nobody wants a chubby corpse - NBC News.com

I have printed out materials to donate my body to Oregon Health and Science University. DaddySquirrel doesn't like talking about "IF" something happens during childbirth, but I told him we have to prepare just in case. We'll talk about my wishes this weekend. Since he's not my registered Domestic Partner, I don't know how much say he has in all of this. I'll probably send an email to my brother with him CCd just in case my brother has to have the legal say. Not a legal document, but I just want my bro to know this is happening and he might get a form that he has to sign.