I was just talking to my friend Ron on the phone. His father, Richard, passed away this last Sunday at age 89. Richard had been very active up till the last few weeks, still driving, working on the farm, helping out neighbors with projects, etc.
He fell and broke his arm about two months ago and the doctors then discovered he had bone cancer, lung cancer, and well, cancer all over. He went into a nursing home about 3 weeks ago.
Richard went to the Methodist church here in town, and has been a member of the church since 1919!!! Richard has spent his whole adult life working on church committees, helping with rummage sales, and buidling projects for the church, at least since the 1930s.
Ron told me today that neither the pastor nor anyone else from the church ever inquired about the fact that Richard had not been in attendance in the last couple of months...no calls, no letters, no visits, no nothing.
No one else in the family attended this church, however, they are all quite sad that nobody there made the slightest effort to see what was up with this long time member.
Oddly enough, when Ron was going through some of his dad's stuff, he came across a card that was mailed to Richard from the church back in the 1950s. He had missed a couple of Sunday's and the church mailed him this card to make sure all was well and that they missed him.
