My Dad (Bill Albus) Memorial
September 15, 1929-June 5, 2009

It was Tuesday June 2nd. around 5:55 pm. I was at a meeting and my daughter called and said, "You need to come home now." I thought her sisters' boyfriend or her little brother was just bugging her, so I stalled. She texted, "How long?", so I texted, "coming". I got home, she was outside, she said, "call your mom, grandpa has fallen and is in the hospital." I said, "My mom? Why is she calling?" "No one could find you"(I lost track with all my family but my dad, and I had my nieces and nephews on facebook) I can't remember much of the phone call. I just remember calling Emanuel, finding out he was in IUC and we headed out, (Anna and Nicole and Caden and I). I didn't really realize it was as bad as it was when we left. I was cringing though, because my grandfather, (his father) died after a fall off of a ladder.
On the way to the hospital I called Barb, (pastors' wife,good friend) and got dad on the prayer chain, then I called Kathy to have her put something onto facebook for prayers. Pastor Scott got to the hospital soon after we did. He was there every day that my dad was, and twice one day. My brother Ken flew in from Idaho as soon as I called him. My daughter Susy spent a lot of time at the hospital, my daughter Nicole was up there almost as much as I was. I was on the phone with my brother Mike a few times a day. My husband Carey took over Caden so that I could be at the hospital as much as possible.
My step-mother Donna and my step-sister Ann were outside of ICU in the waiting area when we got there. All of the sudden I felt very protective of Donna. It's still real foggy, but I remember going in and seeing dad. He was on a breathing machine, and had all these tubes coming out of him. He was very swollen and there was blood on his pillow. He had fallen in his driveway and hit his head on the truck. He was life flighted to Emanuel from Astoria General Hospital.
We didn't find out till after a day or so that he had had a stroke. "There was no indication that he tried to stop his fall, so he probably didn't even know". So, he had brain trauma in the front of his head from the fall,and in the back from the stroke. He had very primal movements, He had pain. He was strapped down because he fought to pull off the breathing machine and all the tubes,("your father is a very strong man")
There was lot of waiting. "When,,, will he, wake up? Donna, (other step-sister) and Ralph came. Tammy and the kids came. Then there was the question, "If he wakes up, how diminished...? "We told the doctor we had already gone past dad's directives, (with the breathing machine, the fluid drain, etc) The doctor said one more test, the probes, to know how much brain activity....The fluid drain might have helped... Then the probes were inconclusive.
"Take all that crap off of him" (my words, I don't know if I said that out loud).Doctor said they "have to wean him off the drugs first, tomorrow we will remove....If we just stop them he'll die, let's give him a chance to breath on his own." When he got the breathing machine off he was more comfortable.Taking out the probes was hard, closing up the holes was terrible. Holding his hand and laying my face on his arm was precious.
At 12:05 on Friday,(June 5th),my sister in law Tammy had just finished reading out of the bible to dad. At about 12:07 Pastor and Barb came in. We were trying to call the nurse because dad needed suctioning again. Scott said, "Let's pray while we're waiting." He said the most beautiful prayer I'd ever heard then said, "Amen", and my father took his last breath. I didn't realize he was gone until my brother held up his watch to my face. I looked back at Dad and then knew.

We took dads ashes and put them where Steve and Tim died.

June 5th, 12:11pm

Wilfred Wallace Albus (Bill)

September 15, 1929-June 5, 2009
I miss him so much

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