Eric Flescher

[BKDPhillips]

Wed eve update from Sue-Ellen his wife:

Today was moving day for Eric. I went to Select to say goodbye to staff and let Eric know he would be taking another "field trip" to the skilled nursing facility (SNF). Royal Terrace is much closer to home and actually it is the rehab facility he was at when he was recovering from his stroke back in 2004.
They made him comfortable very quickly. They also made me very comfortable. The Social Worker introduced herself to me and was able to answer questions. The staff seems to work well together and communicates with each other.

Something that is very, very nice... because Eric has no infection (he was taken off the antibiotics nearly 2 weeks ago and so far nothing has grown) coming into the facility, there is no longer a need to don the gown and gloves to visit him. Hooray!!

There are chairs set up in the room for visitors, and I do hope (hard as it is to see Eric in this way) that there will be an occasional visitor to say hello, read to him, and just chat about whatever...Although he might not be able to tell you, I am certain he'll appreciate your company.


I will post the location of this new facility later today. But I have to go right now.

 

[BKDPhillips]

The convention sounds fantastic and I'm sure Eric would be there or talking about it. Here is what is happening w/ Eric this past week as recorded by his wife, Sue-Ellen:


I had been in to visit ... coming to Royal Terrace. It is only 10 minutes from home so there is more time visiting and less time driving. The staff there is doing all they can to continue the care he was getting at Select. He gets RT and PT and even activity therapy 3x a week. ....
The equipment is not the "state of the art" as it was at Select, but seems to be doing the job it needs to do in terms of Eric's care. The oxygen is from a compressor and is quite noisy,.... He does have an air mattress and "boots" to keep his heels from getting sore. The staff goes out of their way to keep him comfortable. He even has some of his favorite T-shirts to wear. After a gown for two months, he is probably happy to wear his own clothes!
He spends time out of his bed in the chair for range of motion. ....
I brought over some books I thought he would enjoy. His joke book, a comic book, a spicy-hot cookbook, and some books with lots of photos. I also tore out some bird and astronomy photos, which the activity therapist will laminate and put on the ceiling for some visual stimulation....
Eric had a fever yesterday and it seemed to go down with some tylenol. They have cooled down the room and gave him a cool towel. Today he appeared better.

As promised here is where he is located:
Royal Terrace Nursing & Rehab
201 E Flaming Rd, Olathe, KS 66061
(913) 829-2273

This is located just west of I-35 if you take the old hwy 56 exit as you come south from KC. If coming north from Emporia go north on K7 if you exit the 151st St exit on the south side of Olathe. The facility is on the southeast corner of K7 (Harrison St) and Old Hwy 56.



I wish you all a safe return home after the convention!!

Belinda

 

[BKDPhillips]

The lastest from Sue-Ellen his wife -

We were all very impressed with the team meeting. The staff at Royal Terrace truly work as a team, listen to the family, and concern themselves with Eric's needs. There were 7 or 8 staff at the meeting. It was so refreshing to hear what they were doing for Eric rather than the weekly "no change" we were used to hearing every Tuesday. The OT and PT actually educate staff working with Eric on how they want everything done for him so they can back off their services. If there are other needs, they would return. RT works the same way and trains the nursing staff on how best to maintain respiratory needs. We hope to do something nice for them as they do so much for Eric's care.

The Activity therapist has followed through on what she said she would do. Elvis has already been in the room to visit Eric. The photos of birds and sky have been laminated and I believe placed where Eric can see them. Unfortunately, we cannot know what he can actually see, but if he can at all, he deserves more than a blank wall. The staff gets him in a special chair (its actual name escapes me at the moment) and it seems to be the most comfortable I see him during the day.

All the continued prayers and good wishes have been greatly appreciated by myself and Eric's family. I continue to share your notes with Eric.

 

[jamesmseitz]

I chased with Eric last year.... I am going down there in Early March..... i hope my Friend is awake by then.... I will miss him this year chasing..... thank you for your prayers....he is a great friend

 

[BKDPhillips]

This update was today, Tues Feb 23 at 4pm from his wife on Caringbridge:


It has been a while since I last wrote and there have been a great many changes. It was important to have the family up to date before posting anything. Eric has made one last move to hospice house here in Kansas City, MO where he will be made comfortable and live his final days. Hospice House has been an amazing place, providing comfort, solace, and support to both Eric and his family.

Through this whole ordeal, we had hoped for a better outcome and were so optimistic. When the big changes we had hoped for had not happened, we had looked at the results of a number of tests to determine whether there was any hope for recovery, and we were devastated to find that his chances were none and that the damage to his brain had been too great. It will be a matter of time now and with all that he has been through, he deserves the dignity and peacefulness that hospice care provides. Hard as it is to accept, it has been comforting to see him comfortable at long last. He had felt so horribly for so long.

We have appreciated the notes, the calls, the offers of support and more that have come from the community here in Kansas. For those that have wanted to know what they can do for Eric, you can come here to Hospice House and visit him, visit me, and all that would be a great comfort at this time. The other thing one can do is remember his life; how he loves the night sky, the comets, the storms he chased, the total solar eclipses, his carnivourous plants, the hummingbirds, his recipes, and the friends he has made along the way. For all of you are important to him.

I am also thankful for his family; his mother, his children, his siblings, my children, who have all been there for both of us.



I will update after I contact her personally again..... Belinda

 

[Joey Ketcham]

This update was today, Tues Feb 23 at 4pm from his wife on Caringbridge:


It has been a while since I last wrote and there have been a great many changes. It was important to have the family up to date before posting anything. Eric has made one last move to hospice house here in Kansas City, MO where he will be made comfortable and live his final days. Hospice House has been an amazing place, providing comfort, solace, and support to both Eric and his family.

Through this whole ordeal, we had hoped for a better outcome and were so optimistic. When the big changes we had hoped for had not happened, we had looked at the results of a number of tests to determine whether there was any hope for recovery, and we were devastated to find that his chances were none and that the damage to his brain had been too great. It will be a matter of time now and with all that he has been through, he deserves the dignity and peacefulness that hospice care provides. Hard as it is to accept, it has been comforting to see him comfortable at long last. He had felt so horribly for so long.

We have appreciated the notes, the calls, the offers of support and more that have come from the community here in Kansas. For those that have wanted to know what they can do for Eric, you can come here to Hospice House and visit him, visit me, and all that would be a great comfort at this time. The other thing one can do is remember his life; how he loves the night sky, the comets, the storms he chased, the total solar eclipses, his carnivourous plants, the hummingbirds, his recipes, and the friends he has made along the way. For all of you are important to him.

I am also thankful for his family; his mother, his children, his siblings, my children, who have all been there for both of us.



I will update after I contact her personally again..... Belinda

My heart sunk after reading this, not the outcome we were all hoping for. All we can do is pray and hope for a miracle that somehow Eric will pull through this.

 

[Shane Adams]

Like Joey (and everyone), this was not the outcome I'd hoped for. As long as Eric is still alive there is hope, and I choose to cling to that.

 

[MatthewCarman]

I agree that there is still hope. I will be praying for Eric tonight. I never knew Eric besides what he posted here on Stormtrack but he came off as a nice guy who enjoyed life and I enjoyed reading his discusions about astronomy. If things do not turn out like I hope he will be missed.

 

[John Farley]

I, too, am very sorry to hear this. My thoughts and prayers are with Eric and his family.

 

[Jerry Prsha]

Oh no... I can't believe it... I really thought that he'd pull through and there'd actually be a party in his honor. I'm stunned... and so sorry...

 

[Laura Duchesne]

Praying here in Canada for his recovery as well.

 

[KendraReed]

No words can describe my dismay as I read Belinda's update from Sue-Ellen. My thoughts and prayers remain with Sue-Ellen, Eric and their families.

 

[BKDPhillips]

Thank you all.... I agree! I was so stunned by the latest news. I simply could post it and not react.

I met him and his wife through this forum and enjoyed his company at several birthday parties, eating out or wine tastings over the past two years. I loved the first time he shared his storm and eclipse pictures w/ my family. He was very eager to teach me all he knew. Ironically, shortly after we met, he worked w/ some of my gifted school children through the local college and then ended up teaching science to several of my son's friends at our high school. It was like we were meant to meet each other.

I am still trying to make sense of it. The best way you could bless his wife as she reads these posts are to share memories of times you had w/ Eric personally or through his posts on the forum, much like some of you are doing right now.

I have been trying to get a hold of his wife but she is understandably not answering her phone. I will check w/ some of her co-workers tomorrow and a mutual friend and try to get more info as to his exact location so you if you are in the area.

As noted by some personal messages as well, keep praying for a miracle! He truly had a heart of gold. To answer some of you, yes he is Jewish and he and his wife were active in their synagogue.

Prayerfully yours,

Belinda

 

[Karla Dorman]

Oh, this breaks my heart ... I'm sorry. Will keep you and Eric in my prayers ... God can do miracles. Don't give up hope.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

Keep us posted Belinda.

I just want to share a personal story that I remember about Eric. Eric and I never had a chance to meet in person, but often we would exchange emails over the years and both of us had hoped to one day meet, and we almost did. I remember a few years ago I was chasing up in NE Kansas and I had stopped at Flying-J's in Topeka to hook up to their WiFi. What I didn't know was at the same time I was there, Eric was also there except he was on the opposite side of the truck stop.

The last thing I did before leaving the truck stop was I had made a post on StormTrack stating my location and current weather conditions. I later read an email that Eric sent me not too long after I made the post telling me that he was at that same truck stop at the time I was there except he was on the other side. After that him and I joked about how close we were to finally meeting.

When I think of Eric one thing is for sure, Eric had a deep love for the sky above. Whether it was watching storms pass by or gazing at the stars above, he was very passionate about it. Astronomy fascinated him just as much as weather or tornadoes. When it came to weather and astronomy, Eric was like a kid in a candy store. Tonight as I sit here, I pray for a miracle and that Eric will pull through and somehow, someway, he will be back with his wife and family and someday return to us on StormTrack to talk about the things he loves. If that day never comes, all I can say is that Eric will be sorely missed.