Thank You

This of course will be my final post to this blog and I am not sure where to begin.

Thank you all so much for your love and support during these past few weeks. Your visits to the hospital, cards, phone calls, emails, and comments on the obiturary. I sit here this morning not wanting to do anything but sit and stare off into space thinking of my Dad, weaping over him. I want to try to go back to when I was a kid and he would protect me from the world. Life does go on, but I want it to stop right now. Our family (my Mom, Matt, myself, Ian, my Dad's brothers and sisters, nieces, nephews, cousins, friends) we have lost a part of us. My Mom said 1/2 of herself is gone and I feel the same way.

Our family is the best family in the world and we are so blessed to have them. They have been a huge support to us and I know they are also hurting so much. Thank you to all our freinds, you also have been a big support for us. The calling hours at the funeral home, so many people attended and we enjoyed greeting each and everyone of you and hearing stories of Dad. Thank you to all who sent flowers and/or is contributing to the Susan G. Komen breast cancer research to help in finding a cure for this disease in which our lives have been impacted. My cousin, aunt and my grandmother are all survivors and we want a cure found so no woman or man is impacted by this again.

My Uncle Danny, Uncle Paul, and Uncle Tim will now take the place of my Father. Since my Father is no longer here to give me advise or keep me straight, I know I can count on them to be there for me and to provide me with strength, love, and guidance that I need. My Dad and his love will always be in my heart and I cannot wait until the day I see him again in Heaven when he can hold me and I can tell him I love him face to face.

Thank you to you all and we love you all so much.
The Ashcraft family

Funeral for Dad

Funeral Arrangements:

Calling Hours will be at Bucker & Kishler Funeral Home
985 North 21st St
Newark, OH 43055

Tues 2-4 and 6-8


Funeral will be at Community Wesleyan Church
161 Myrtle Ave (21st st and Myrtle Ave)
Newark, OH 43055

Wed. 11:00 a.m.

Our Sadness

To all our loved ones,

Our lives forever changed tonight at 10:20 p.m. when my Father passed away and went home to be with the Lord. It was a difficult day for our entire family and the next few day's/weeks/months/years will be extremely hard. We were so blessed to have all our family and special friends with us during the entire day..... we could not have gotten through this day without you all.

I will love you forever Dad.

We will post funeral arrangements once we have them finalized.

Letter to my Father

To my Dear Dad,
Tomorrow we will have to say good bye to you here on this earth. I know I may not have said it enough that I love you, but I also did not think you would be taken from us so soon. You were so rich in life and you gave so much love. I am so proud of you and Thank God every day for giving me to you and Mom. You and Mom have loved and protected me, and taught me the values in life. You have always been my idol and hero and I can only hope to be half the man that you are..... I was taught by the best. We have shed so many tears the past few weeks and we have shared so many stories about you. You did so much good and would help anyone out. You are a very forgiving man and your heart is made of gold. Don't worry about us we will be okay and Matt and I will take care of Mom. You and Mom have been married for over 44 yrs and this will be a big adjustments for her and she will miss you so much. She, Matt and I sat in your bedroom tonight and cried together. I don't think you realized how many people love you. I can tell you that you are a very loved man with so many wonderful family and friends. Mike Solis told Mom and I tonight, as he was driving us home, with tears in his eyes that you are a second Father to him and he will miss you and his conversations with you. Although it is so hard to say good bye and let you go I know I must for I don't want you to suffer any longer. Grandma and Grandpa will be there to meet you. There will be others there to greet you like Kathi, Lisa & Laura, Aunt Norma, Aunt Micki, Aunt Ida, and Uncle Willy and all our other family members gone on. Best of all you get to be with Jesus and will become our special Angel.

With the tears flowing in my eyes and our hearts aching for you I will tell you again........ Dad I LOVE you so much and Thank You for being my Dad.

Your Son,
Perry


Thank you to everyone for sharing in this blog. It has been a wonderful communication piece the past few weeks in sharing the updates on Dad. I have also found it a way to talk of how wonderful my Dad is and share a few stories. Thanks for allowing us to be part of your lives and allowing us into your hearts. Tomorrow will be the hardest day of our lives, please keep us in your prayers and thoughts at 11:00 a.m. Once we complete the funeral arrangements they will posted on this blog.

We met with the Dr's this afternoon. We sit here with tears in our eyes in so much pain tonight knowing that we will be removing my Dad from life support on Saturday. My Dad's brothers Danny and Paul, my Aunt Diane and cousin Danell are coming from North Carolina tomorrow. My Dad's sister Faith will be coming in from Dayton and his other sister Linda lives in Newark. We will not remove him until Sat. to give our family time to arrive here to spend time with him and we will have to say our good bye's Sat.

The Dr's told us that due to his condition he would never breath on his own again. He would need to be on a traque for the rest of his life and would have no quality of life. My Dad would not want to live like that. He enjoyed life and if he could not live then he would want to go on to be with the Lord.

Even though my Father is in a drug induced coma I spent sometime with him alone tonight talking with him telling him that Matt and I are so blessed to have him as our Father. I know I gave him and my Mom alot of grief in my younger years (you know how kids are growing up & being ADHD), but no matter what I did I knew he always loved me. He supported me in whatever I did and never judged me.... oh he gave his opinion, but whatever I decided he supported me. I know that we will have another special Angel looking over us.

Please continue to remember my Mom, my Brother, myself, my nephew, and the entire Ashcraft and Daulton family during this time.

Thank you all so much for your prayers the past couple weeks. You all are very special to us.

Phyllis, Perry, Matt, & Ian Michael

We Love you very much Dad xoxoxoxo..........................

11:54 p.m.

No changes in Dad. Dr wants to meet with us tomorrow (1/15).

Has not been an easy day in our family. Mom is doing as well as expected. This all seems like a bad dream that we cannot wake up from. I have been remembering back to my childhood a lot today of all my wonderful memories. I remember (I think right after my brother was born), my Dad drove my Mom, my brother, and myself to Kentucky to spend a few days with my Grandparents. He was unable to stay as he had to drive back to Newark for work. I remember after he left I kept screaming "I want my Dad, I want my Dad". I knew it was only for a few day's but I was a child who did not like separation or changes and I still don't. That is what I have felt like screaming today "I want my Dad". I will be having surgery this Friday (nothing serious, just a kidney stone being blasted) and this will be the first surgery that my Dad will miss. He even showed up unexpectedly a couple years ago when I was having a toe nail removed just to be there incase I needed him. I know if he were able he would be there Friday.

We could not get through these past several weeks and what we maybe facing in the future without our family, friends, and church.

To our wonderful neighbor Mike Richert. You, Melanie, and Chandler are part of our family. Thanks for always being there to watch out for Mom and Dad and to jump in and take care of something when it needed done.....like always replacing shingles on their roof when they would blow off, haha. Dad always enjoys meeting in the yards or you coming over to chat with him. He thinks of you as a son.

Boeing co-workers - Dad's favorite place away from home. He loves working with you all. He enjoys getting up in the morning and coming to work. When he was put in Riverside on 1/2 he told me not to forget to call Dave to tell him he would not be at work.

We are praying hard for a recovery. My cousin Cassie handed me our Grandmothers cross necklas today. Dad carried it, I think, through all his past surgeries for comfort and he knew Grandma was with him and he always came through. I will take it to the hospital tomorrow and say a big prayer with it.

10:03 p.m.

Not sure how to post information like this in a blog. We met with one of Dad's Dr's this evening. Basically we are not given much encouragement towards Dad's healing. The Dr. said Dad is a very sick man and has a lot going against him. He has some renal failure, the creatinine level has increased. He did receive 2 units of blood yesterday, but he is still anemic and his hemoglobin is at 7.5. They don't know why the enema. The Dr's are continuing to work with him to try and get him through this, but basically at this point we need a miracle. The MRSA pneumonia/infection is having an ill effect on all his other organs. They did a chest x-ray today and the pneumonia has worsened. He is still in a drug induced coma state and continues on life support, however, he is comfortable and is not in any pain and this gives us comfort to know he is not aware of what is going on. He has several different specialist working with him and they are monitoring him closely.

Mom and I are sitting here in their living room going through current and old pictures talking of my Dad. We do pray that a miracle will occur and we will have a lot more year's and opportunities to create memories with him.

My Dad is an unselfish man and he loves everyone and will do anything to help anyone out. All of you whether you are a wonderful family member, dear friends, or a dear neighbor he considers you all family and you all have a special place in his heart. I can only hope to be half the man that my Father is. I have been so blessed to have Hank Ashcraft as my father. Thank you Lord for giving him to me and my brother and I want a lot more years to say to his face "Dad I love you so much and you are my hero".

10:11 a.m.

Not much change today from yesterday. His temp is 100. Hopefully with him being on the antibiotics for close to 24 hrs the fever will start breaking soon. Sugars are good, but he is on a continuous insulin drip. He is breathing some on his own, but he is breathing faster then he should be so the resp. therapist is trying to figure out why that is happening. They are trying to bring him out of the sedation some so that he will follow commands..... I told them to be careful as he will be fiesty, haha.

The Lord is working to make him better..... we are just not ready to let him go. We need him!!

Jan 12, 2009, 9:13 p.m.

Spoke to hospital and Dad's temp is 99.1 and he is off the cooling blanket (for now). They did start him on the antibiotics today for the MRSA pneumonia. His sugars are good tonight.

I am praying so hard that we are on the road to recovery. Honestly though I am afraid as we have thought before he was showing signs of improvement to only have a set back. We have to keep thinking positive.

Madison, Gunner, and T.C (his Pug babies) are looking for him everywhere. Madison sits on the steps all the time looking out the window to see if she can see his car driving up the driveway. Sometimes they think they hear him and they all run to the garage door barking (as they do when he arrives home) only to be disappointed.

Jan 12, 2009, 1:12 p.m.

Well we spoke to the hospital today and we have somewhat of an answer to Dad's condition. He has been diagosed with MRSA Pneumonia! They are beginning treatment today. Not sure if something else will arise, but at least we are starting to get some answers that can be treated. He has lost some blood so he is getting 2 units of blood transfusion today. Not sure why he has a low hemoglobin, could be related to kidney failure. The Drs entered him into study today, for drugs that combat MRSA Pneumonia, Mom had to give her consent. The Dr has hope, or he would not have contacted the Research Dept...Mom said, I hope someone else can be helped through ALL OF THIS. If he doesn't take care of himself when he gets home, he's really going to be in trouble." We don't want to and cannot go through this again...it's not an easy thing. We are not out of the woods yet, but things are looking brighter for us and hopefully there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Continue to lift your prayers and keep those candles burning at Blessed Sacrament and St. Francis.

Jan 11, 2009, 6:40 p.m.

Dad's temp was down to 99 when we left the hospital, however, he is still on the cooling pad. Sugars were down to 90, they have not been that low for a long time. He appears to be losing some blood somewhere. They might give him a blood transfusion tomorrow. Hopefully will have results tomorrow from the cultures the Infectious Disease Dr. took. Each day that they don't figure out the exact cause/problem gets more and more frustrating for us.

Lung sounds still not good. Still receiving 40% oxygen via vent tubing in lungs.....maintains 96% sPo2.....Receives Nutrition via continuous tube feedings.

Thanks so much for the many visits at the hospital and also for the phone calls, messages, cards, emails, and especially prayers.

Sunday - January 11, 2009

They put dad on a cooling blanket again this morning to help reduce his temperature, which was 103. No results are back from the tests that were ordered by the infectious Doctor. His white blood cell count is up to 1300, which is good news. This means his body is starting to fight what ever infection he has contracted. He is still connected to a ventilator, however he is breathing on his own in a sedative state and the ventilator will provide assistance when needed.

He is sleeping peacefully and his color looks good. Everyday produces another step in the healing process. We keep praying that the Doctors will discover what is causing the underlining issue.

We are so blessed to have the support of family and friends!!

Jan 10, 2009, 8:06 p.m.

Just arrived home from the hospital. When we arrived there today Dad's temp was 102.8. They had just placed him on a cooling pad and turned the temp down in his room to cool his body off. I took a cool rag and was rubbing it on his face and forhead. By the time I left the hospital his temp was 100.2, but I figure it will go back up. His sugar was down to 121 which is very good. The Infectious Disease Dr. was in today and took all kinds of test. I asked the nurse what all they are testing for and she was not even sure... she said he took all kinds of cultures that she had never even heard of...... that is his profession I guess. I pray that something shows up or he can figure something out.

A Prayer

A prayer for Henry:

Dear Lord, 

You know Henry so much better than I do. You know his  sickness and the burden he carries. You also know his heart. Lord, I ask you to be with Henry now, working in his life. Let your will be done in Henry's life.

Lord, I pray for Henry because your Word says I should pray for his healing. I believe you hear this earnest prayer from my heart and that it is powerful because of your promise. I have faith in you to heal Henry, but I also trust in the plan you have for his life.

Lord, I don't always understand your ways, and why Henry has to suffer, but I trust you. I ask that you look with mercy and grace toward Henry. Nourish his spirit and soul in this time of suffering and comfort him with your presence. Let Henry know you are there with him through this difficulty. And may you be glorified in his life and also in mine. 

Amen

Jan 10, 2009, 9:33 a.m.

Really no changes with Dad this morning. Temp still elevated to 100.5. They are doing his breathing test again this morning and he is doing good. Wish I had more and better news to share. It is so frustrating that they cannot figure out what is causing the problem. Why is he going though this? With all the knowledge these Dr's have why can they not figure this out?

Mom is doing as well as expected. We are trying to get her to do other things, during the morning, to focus her mind else where. She just wants to shut down.

Jan 9, 2009 10:54 p.m.

Dad's temp tonight is now 100.... goes up and down. His temp earlier this evening had been 103 so they began packing him in ice so that it would not get any higher. The Catscan and the Ultra sound test both come back clear... no issues there. He did very well on his breathing test the morning. He was removed from the vent for almost 2 hrs, however, they did keep him sedated during that time. They were afriad if they brought him out of the sedation he would have paniced and he would not have passed the test. They have decided to bring in another Dr who is a specialist in "Infectious Disease", hoping that with his speciality and a new pair of eye's they may be able to figure out what is going on with him. His case has the Dr's puzzled.

Jan 9, 2009 10:42 a.m.

Dad had a good night, he still ran a temp of 101. They did the Catscan last night and they did the Ultra Sound this a.m.....we are still awaiting those results. He is currently in the process of his breathing test and the nurse said he is doing good.... Praise the Lord. These are baby steps for him, but today is the first day that I have felt encouragement that he can pull through this.

Please remember my cousin Jody Kline and her family in your prayers today. They are placeing her father in law in a nursing home today due to cancer, and Pops (his real name is Charles Kline) is going down hill. I know this is a difficult day for them.

Jan 8, 2009 9:08 p.m.

Mom, Matt and I spoke with the Dr. this evening. We got a baby step of good news. He said that Dad has improved over the past couple days. All the blood and urine cultures are coming back clear. The levels in the pancreas are elevated a little, but the pancreas is good. Kidney functions are improving and he is putting out a lot of fluid. However, there is a puzzle they are trying to figure out and they do know that he does not have Congestive Heart Failure. His lungs are still full of fluid and inflamed, they are not sure where the fluid is coming from or what is causing it. His Triglycerides are very high and his temp is running this evening 102.8 and the white blood counts are not elevated..like I said a puzzle. They are running more test tonight and additional Dr's will be seeing him tomorrow. They are going to do a breathing test tomorrow by removing him from the vent for 1 hour to monitor his breathing and then place him back on the vent. Dad is still on a drug induced sedation (semi coma). Like I said... it is a baby step of recovery, but at least it is a step in the right direction.

Thanks so much for all your prayers. We are not out of the woods yet so please continue to remember him. We have pictures hanging in his room of his 3 pugs, a picture of him with his his brothers and sisters Danny, Paul, Linda, and Faith, a picture of the entire Ashcraft family and, of course, a picture of him and Mom.... this is so when he awakes from his sedation he will have familiar faces of the family he loves so much. Instead of looking at strangers (ie: Dr's and nurses). Thanks to all for your love, support, emails, phone calls, and visits to the hospital. When someone is going through a crisis in their lives this is the time when they need their family and friends.

Love to you all, Phyllis, Perry, Matt and Ian Michael...we feel your love and prayers.

Thursday, January 08, 2009

Received word that Henry's temperature has gone down to 99 degrees. Pancreas levels are good and will be meeting with the Doctor today.

Jan 7th 9:23 p.m. update

Just arrived home from the hospital. Dad's temp was 100.8 at 9:29 p.m. (I just called. It was 100.7 at 6:00 p.m.). He had not had any tylonol for quite some time so the nurse is getting ready to give him some. Hopefully the temp is breaking. He was resting peaceful as they are keeping him sedated. He is putting out more fluid which is good. They still cannot figure out where infection is. They have no plans to remove him from the vent as of yet.

Wednesday, January 07, 2009

This morning spoke with nurse and she stated temperature is now 101 and they are changing the sedation medicine and he is getting feisty.

Update - Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Just found out his temperature is now 103 degrees.

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

The blog has been started to help keep friends and family members of Henry Ashcraft informed on the progress he is making at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, OH.

Henry was admitted to Riverside on Friday, January 2, 2008 with Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) and possible pneumonia. His lungs were filled with fluid and his body was starting to shut down. He was placed on a ventilator to assist him with breathing and given medications to start removing the fluids his body was retaining and combat any infections that may be occurring.

Today he has made some progress in that he is starting to output more fluids, however he has started to run a high fever of 102 degrees and the Doctors are trying to find the cause of the fever. His blood sugar levels are running high. His triglycerides is also running high, which is being caused by the current sedative medicine. They are in the process of switching sedative medicines to bring down the triglycride levels. The ventilator has been moved down from 100% to 40%, which is good news. The Doctors are also doing test to identify any renal failure.

Progress to recovery is going slow, however there has been improvement from when he was admitted to the hospital. How much longer to recovery is not yet known and only time will tell.