Three 'leftover' tales of gratitude to complete the Thanksgiving weekend
Today is an extension of a Thanksgiving celebration. Our version today is told in three parts. Three versions of being grateful and looking forward. There are two stories about the wonders of science and medicine. The other is a continuation of a pickleball love story.
Charlotte Garrison, of South Bend, remembers Nov. 3 every year. That is when her tracheostomy tube was removed in 2017. “It was a big celebration,” she said. She continues to remember what she went through.
She said she is so grateful for Dr. Paul Bryson of Cleveland Clinic that he is first on her list of prayers every night.
Charlotte had a rare immune disorder that caused sores in her mouth and nose in 2016. She experienced fatigue and bleeding gums. Then sores began cutting off her airways.
As a kindergarten teacher at St. Anthony Catholic School, she struggled to keep up with the young students. She worked half days and then retired.
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Doctors locally knew it was an immune disease, but they couldn’t identify the specific disease. Her family doctor referred her to Cleveland Clinic. The team in Cleveland diagnosed the illness as mucous membrane pemphigoid. Charlotte was suffering from a rare subgroup. The cause is unknown.
The Cleveland doctors started medications to minimize the scarring. Her condition took a nasty turn, breathing was labored and she was airlifted from South Bend to Cleveland. “It was like being in a movie. I told my daughter that I loved her and her two sisters. I was at peace if this was it. I saw the lights in the hallway, the doors flying open in the operating room. The doctors were there with facemasks.”
After the emergency tracheostomy performed by Dr. Bryson, she began to take meds to minimize inflammation. There were more surgeries. More visits to Cleveland. Recovery at home. Then there were the first trips out of the house for church and Martin’s for groceries.
She is grateful to be breathing, for family and friends. She is happy to rake leaves and vacuum the house. “It changed my outlook. I try to help others. To be nicer, and to volunteer.”
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Verge “Brother Sage” Gillam is known for storytelling. He shares tales of the Underground Railroad and Kwanzaa. Now his story is about a kidney transplant at the age of 76. At his age, that is rare.
Verge and his wife, Charlotte Pfeifer, talked about the long journey. “He was on dialysis for 12 years. The doctor told him what he needed to do to be a recipient,” she said. The list of requirements included losing weight, getting more physically fit and controlling his blood pressure. He did that and he got down to 179 pounds at one time. The doctor was impressed with him.
He said he couldn’t have done it without help from his wife and family. “Charlotte is my rock.” He also saluted Beacon Health and Fitness Center. “I was there sometimes three times a week walking,” he said.
He was put back on the list, and he received a kidney in April.
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“We were blessed with a kidney from a younger person, someone who was 19. A family lost a child in a car accident, yet they thought about donations. It was a perfect match,” she said. “Because of the family, we have a second chance. They don’t know who we are. With all the turmoil in the world, this is about being good and giving people another chance. Talk about being grateful.”
Verge and Charlotte are unaware of anything more about the donor or the family. They have prepared a letter to be given to them thanking them for their generosity.
There was an extended stay in Indianapolis following the transplant. Verge said he is doing better and getting out for Kwanzaa presentations. “The doctor said I received the Cadillac or the Maserati of kidneys. It is the Maserati version.”
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Now for romance. Remember Jean Conner and Paul Schaefer? Back in September, they were featured for their engagement. They are both from Osceola and they met on the pickleball court in 2021. It was a "dilly" of a story about second chances.
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During the pandemic she began to play in 2020. Paul also needed to get out and was urged to play in 2021 at the Kroc Center.
They had a lot in common including being neighbors in Osceola. There were lunches at Fiddler’s Hearth following matches. They began courting, and it turned into love for Jean and Paul. They got engaged this past July. No big wedding was planned at the time.
Jean wrote to fill us all in. They got married on Nov. 2. “Paul and I tied the knot at the river’s edge. Got the best day in November.”
Congratulations.
Contact Kathy at kfborlik@yahoo.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Indiana pickleball couple from Osceola marries; doctors save two lives
