Unfortunately, this is Geoff. I know you want to hear from Gin, and I know a lot of you are curious how Gin is doing. Long story short is not well. She has been steadily and quickly declining all week. Chances are she only has a couple of days left. Of course we're still hoping for a last minute miraculous turnaround, but it doesn't look very likely. Yesterday, I found myself hoping more, for the first time, for an easy passage. We have always been so optimistic, even when the odds were very much against us, that this shift felt like a betrayal. She declined more over the night, and this morning her breathing is noticeably more labored and her heart rate was up. Today it doesn't feel like a betrayal. She is anxious and uncomfortable, and there's not much any of us can do for her here.
I still read her your messages and she likes that, as well as the visits.I take joy that the kids were able to come visit Wednesday night, which turned out to be her last really lucid night. I take joy in the fact she earned her degree yesterday and finished school. This is something she wanted so badly and was so excited to find out. There's so much more I want to write, and there will be time for that, but right now I want to be with her, so I am going to wait on some of the other posts for later. Thank you for all your messages and prayers, they mean the world to us. Please understand if I don't respond, it doesn't mean your message wasn't read or loved, I just don't have time. The guy who never used Facebook is trying to keep up. You are all wonderful, and this celebration and outpouring for Gin kind of overwhelming. Much love from both of us to all of you.
Thank you. You're strong even to put all those words down.
ReplyDeleteYou are all loved and thought of by many. A true inspiration to everyone. Give Gin a hug and let her know I loved our carpool talks.
ReplyDeletePlease let us know if you need anything since we are a short neighborhood away Geoff.
Maureen and family
ps I know the b45 crew would like to help in anyway so if u think of something even if its in the future please let us know.
You two are our heros. She will always be with us and a part of us. And know you have more family than you realize, Geoff. We love you.
ReplyDeleteThank you Geoff. Love you Gin! I'm sorry that we didn't keep in touch more after you left B4/5. I'm so bad at that kind of thing. I am so proud of you. Proud of you for fighting, for going to school and fighting for your dream! Maureen is right...if you need anything at all, please don't hesitate to ask. I know you have a hard time doing so, but it's what friends are for. Food? Babysitters? Anything! Love and prayers to you all -Gilly and the whole RT dept!
ReplyDeleteLove to you. Om Mani Padme Hum. A prayer for a peaceful passing and blessing onward.
ReplyDeleteHello Gin and Geoff. I only know of your lives because my friend Katie told me about how very much you mean to her. So, I'm here to tell you that, if only that, as you face your final days with curiosity and wonder. You are brave and much loved by many!
ReplyDeleteHi Geoff, I had the great privilege of teaching Ginny at Frontier when she was in her women's health class in Summer 2012 and got the news of her illness. I was just thinking about Ginny last week, wondering how she was doing. The news by email to the Frontier community this morning has had me in tears since I read it. I just want you and your children to know how much her faculty have valued our time and interactions with Ginny. What an exceptional woman she is, and how lucky we have been to have the chance to know her--even from a distance. I am holding her in the Light, as I am holding all of you who love her.
ReplyDeleteLaura Manns-James
Hi Geoff, A group of strangers in St. Louis have been praying for Ginny since yesterday. One of our group has a specific message for you. How can he get in touch with you today?
ReplyDeleteAnn Lindemann annlindemann@hotmail.com
Geoff, that person is me. My name is Rick. Geoff, I left a message on your home answering machine. I left my cell number on your machine. My email is rgv4@charter.net.
DeleteI believe I had a supernatural dream with specific instructions for you and I know this sounds so strange. I feel strange typing it.
Please email me and I will send you my cell number if you can't make it home.
I have asked our Stampin' Up! club members to send cards to Ginny, so the cards should arrive soon. Let her know we are thinking of her with lots of hugs and prayers. Nancy Endwright
ReplyDeleteDear, dearest Ginny,
ReplyDeleteIf we could make you well by the strength of our will alone it would be done. You are loved and there are many, many people who are feeling this moment with you. You are in the center. We are encircled around you holding hands.
Nancy Mustapich
Ginny, I am from FNU class 92. 'Just want you and your family to know I am holding you in prayer. Don't be afraid to let go. There is so much love and peace on the other side and God will take care of your little family. Thank you for the inspiration you've been.
ReplyDeleteI burn candles for each of you. Ginny, you are such an inspiration! I wish you peace, may your anxiety fade away with ease. Geoff I hold you in my thoughts, may you have the support you need to continue to be a rock in your family. I pray you too will have the time to melt into yourself. For your children I cry...I cry tears knowing the pride they will have for their Mama for the rest of their full and blessed lives. I will continue to hold you all in my thoughts!
ReplyDeleteGin, you are an amazing, smart, adventurous, passionate, loyal, and loving woman. I'm so glad we are friends! Congrats on your degree! You are an inspiration to mid-wives.
ReplyDeleteGeoff, you are such a supportive and loving husband and father. Gin is so lucky to have you by her side today.
BIG hugs from St. Paul and much, much love, Meghan and Rolf
Geoff - you, Ginny and the kids are in our thoughts. May the love of all around you hold you close and sustain you.
ReplyDeleteKaren and Joanie
Geoff:
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for keeping us up-to-date. I am so sorry that Ginny's not doing well, but rejoice with her in receiving her degree. Ray and I are keeping you and your family in our thoughts and prayers, and love you all. I pray that God's love (whether you believe or not) will surround you and keep you and that His peace will be upon you and yours. We are here for you. Call if you need us.
Louise, the kids, and I send our love. Ginny is amazing. Even as she she has been in the fight of her life, she has helped bring so much life and love into the world. Love and Strength, Dave
ReplyDeleteRoar louder than a Lion my sweet Ginny! Thank you for blessing me with your presence in my life. I am a better person because of you. May your spirit be filled with the love we all have for you. Peace, love and Gilda hugs to you and your family!
ReplyDeleteLove always, Karin A.
I do not know you but am part of the Frontier family so am feeling this loss as a sister, and as someone who lost her mom a few short months ago. God bless you all and hold her close. She will remain a powerful force in so many lives and you will be together again someday Im sure of it. I've no idea what else to say. She is in the most powerful of hands now and safe.
ReplyDeleteI am also one of Frontier's family. You are a fighter and an inspiration to all. It is well. Peace and grace to you, and may God strengthen your family.
ReplyDeleteI am another Frontier sister. Many of us have been inspired and deeply saden by Ginnys battle with cancer. As midwives we are with women in birth and death. I wish you the streangth to carry on in life.
ReplyDeleteI know you through this Frontier family Ginny, So I pray as you leave this physical world you know your spirit lives on and on. You and your fight will contniue to inspire women, your name shall be passed on to the new spirits who arrive in our physical world. What an awesome blessing to know You REALLY did make a difference God bless and when you get your wings can you look out for the rest of us :)
ReplyDeleteGinny, Geoff, and family, you are in my thoughts and prayers. God speed.
ReplyDeleteSending love and prayers from another FNU sister. From across the country, I am keeping Ginny and your entire family in my prayers.
ReplyDeleteAnother FNU sister here, I'm Fawn. I met you once- I can't remember if it was Clinical Bound or through the PRIDE program. Congratulations on reaching your goal- you are a midwife of midwives. I've thought about you from time to time since then, and I'm sad to learn of your struggles. I've read your blog in the last day and I want to thank you for opening yourself up to others. I'm praying for blessings, peace, and comfort through this difficult time.
ReplyDeleteGinny, you and your FNU sisters have mobilized the entire FNU community. You led a powerful movement and I am in awe of you. If I can be the midwife you are, even for one day, that would be a very enlightening and treasured gift. Mary B is so proud of you~, I just know it. Many prayers of comfort, peace and healing to you and your family.
ReplyDelete~ Love and light within, Pam Borden, an FNU sister
Another Frontier sister here; Ginny, you have been such an amazing inspiration to me. I have not had the pleasure of meeting you, but still feel a deep connection through our sisterhood and knowing all that you have stood for. I never knew that I could be moved in the way that you have moved me, and I will always be thankful for and remember you. You are an amazing person who has touched so many lives; I am in awe. You truly will live on - you are a legacy. I'm so thankful and honored to have our Frontier sisterhood in common. Sending light, love, peace, comfort, and prayers to you and your family.
ReplyDeleteGeoff: I would really like to visit Gin this weekend if it won't be an intrusion, but I'm not sure where to find her. Please let me know if you are able. Love to you both. Abby
ReplyDeleteAnother Frontier sister here sending prayers of peace and comfort for the entire family. I am so inspired and heartbroken by what has transpired in the last few days. Ginny is so loved and cared for by so many. Her life has touched the masses, and it will continue. God bless.
ReplyDeleteI have not had the pleasure of meeting Ginny but as a Frontier student, I have recently learned of her amazing journey. Please know that I am praying for a miracle as well as peace and comfort for you all.
ReplyDeleteBrandee Yarbrough
Prayers from Arizona and Colorado.
ReplyDeleteGinny, I hope you can feel the warm wonderful surf. You are light and strong and free. You are standing on a surf board about to catch a monster wave. We are standing on shore, cheering, crying, hugging and laughing. All the babies you and the Frontier nurses have ever delivered show up to cheer. You are our Ironman. You are almost there. Your goodness shines out on all of us and we know our hearts will forever be held together by it. Can you hear the roar of the crowd? You are flying. You are free. You are as light as a butterfly.
ReplyDeletesending all our love and hugs to you, Geoff, and kids
Louise and Dave
I know of you and your wife through our mutual friend , Shannon Kane. All I can say is what strength, courage, and bravery you both have shown in the face of such an awful disease. I lost my foster mother to breast cancer in 1995 and yet you never have proper words for others going through this. What a wonderful and powerful example Ginny is for setting her sights on her Masters degree and earning it!! I know she must have touched so many, many lives during her time here. PEACE BE WITH ALL OF YOU.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to Ginny on completion of her Midwifery degree. She set her sights on this accomplishment, and by her determination and strength, has shown us all that NOTHING should ever stand in the way of accomplishing our goals. She is a true inspiration to so many who struggle with the difficulties of juggling work, family, school, not to mention CANCER. We are all so proud of her , and of her family who has given her the love and strength to support her through this journey, even when it seemed crazy or impossible. Thank you, Geoff, for allowing us all to continue to be part of Ginny's journey. Our love and our prayers go out to you, your family, and our sweet Ginny. Rest well, Dear Sister. May God hold you in the hollow of his hand and give you comfort and peace. Much love. Jody
ReplyDeleteDear Ginny, this is Leslie from Meriter. I am praying for comfort and relief for you today. You are a wonderful midwife and I so enjoyed meeting babies with you. With much love, Leslie
ReplyDeleteSo sorry for your loss. Thoughts and prayers to you and your family. I was so happy the school gave her, her degree.
ReplyDeleteHow do I love you, let me count the ways......I shall but love thee better after death. Elizabeth Barrett Browning was maybe trying to tell us it's ok to let go. I know it's a difficult step but it is also a loving and caring thing for you to be able to accept it and for her to be given permission to go on.
ReplyDeleteGinny and family. I am another Frontier faculty writing with a full heart. I am so pleased that you have been granted your degree, and want to echo what Laura said about learning from you. A reflection you wrote on your experiences with GBS after the birth of your baby inspired me to change how I teach this content. So many of your Frontier sisters will benefit from your insight. with love, Amy Marowitz
ReplyDeleteThere are no words that I can write to comfort your family in their loss. May God Bless your husband and children as they travel this journey without your earthly presence. I am so proud to be a part of the Frontier community and that your wish of graduating was fulfilled. We are certainly better for knowing you and having had you apart of our Frontier family. ~ Theresa "Laurie" Mantle
ReplyDeleteYou and your family is in our thoughts at Pumpkin Patch! Please let us know if there is anything you may need. Congrats on earning your degree, Ginny!
ReplyDeleteJen Schmudlach (Ms. S.)
Geoff, E and Ella,
ReplyDeleteMy heart broke when I heard the news of Ginny's passing today from Jessi. I pray it was peaceful. I will miss her dearly. So happy she received her degree and was able to realize that dream. I am sending all the love, joy, and peace in my heart to you all tonight. She was such a special woman. Heaven is a little brighter, a little more beautiful, and a lot more sassy now with her there ;)
Best,
Meredith from UW CCC
Goeff, I am so sorry for your loss and also saw the news on Jessi's Facebook page. I am so sad you are experiencing this so soon; it's a terrible loss for you, your beautiful children, your family, Gin's family, and, really, anyone she met, because she had a real gift of connecting with people. She would have been the most amazing midwife, and I'm sure was appreciated by the women she did encounter in her clinical practicum. Gosh, I am so sorry. Wishing you all some moments of peace during the tumult.
ReplyDeleteKristin Scheeler
Geoff --
ReplyDeleteI am another Frontier sister from a much earlier class. I just finished reading Ginny's blog. I didn't have the opportunity to meet her in person and I only heard of her struggles periodically from current students, but I felt I should read her blog beginning to end. It was so hard to put it down...I am so appreciative of the two of you sharing your struggles, humbling though it was at times. I wish I had followed it throughout her journey.
Certain aspects were familiar, because I was diagnosed with early stage cancer about two months before I was to graduate, and surgery extended my stay in the program a little. I was able to finish comps just before starting chemo and boards a few weeks after that. The fact that she kept going through her program while undergoing treatment is a testament to her sheer determination and grit. I know she saw it as doing what needed to be done, but I'm not certain I would have continued the program with all she was dealing with (and it had been my dream to be a midwife for > 20 years when I started at Frontier).
You are to be lauded for your commitment and service to her and your kids during these past awesomely difficult months. I pray for you and your kids to know true comfort, peace, and rest in the days and months to come.
Kathy Mercer
Class 45 - CNEP (Frontier)
Geoff-
ReplyDeleteI am a Frontier Sister and although I never had the pleasure of meeting Ginny, I am honored to have been able to read about her journey. Ginny's blog has impacted me in more was than I can ever express. I am sorry for your loss and just pray that your family is able to find comfort.
Geoff-
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to let you know how much I adored Ginny and loved seeing her smile and experiencing her wonderful personality. She was a fantastic person. It was a privilege to know her and be part of her journey. Stacy
Oh, how we will miss our smiling baby catching surfer girl. So sorry for everyone's loss. Keeping Geoff, Ephraim, Ella and your families in my thoughts. Knowing Gin was an honor.
ReplyDeleteKirsten
Ginny's family: I am one of the lucky Frontier faculty who had the pleasure of knowing Ginny. This week on campus in Hyden, KY, I've been with a group of midwifery, women's health, and family nurse practitioner students helping them prepare for their clinical learning, the next step in their education. Ginny attended this course last spring. The week has been marked by random moments of attention to Ginny, memories of Ginny, and acknowledgement of her place here. Last night during our celebration at Wendover, we honored Ginny with a moment of silence. Today the students rang the chapel bell, as is the tradition here, to let the world know they are on their way back to their communities to begin their clinical training. One of Ginny's friends throughout her journey here rang the bell last, and then rang the bell a second time, just for Ginny. Ginny was an extraordinary woman and midwife, and she will not be forgotten here. I hope that knowing this provides some comfort for you. Love to you, Nora Webster
ReplyDeleteGeoff,
ReplyDeleteI learned of Ginny's battle from another CNEP student...I'm a class 25 graduate, and I was so thrilled to hear that Frontier awarded her her degree before she died. Thanks for sharing her remarkable story, she will continue to be an inspiration to all who share the dream of joining the community of midwives.
Ginny Lee, CNM
CNEP class 25
Geoff, Ella and Ephraim,
ReplyDeleteI was honored to be at Ginny's benefit in January. You all have such a beautiful community surrounding you. This life is an entering stage right, exiting stage left. With your grace, and pain, and strength, you are our newest teachers. May the long time sun shine on you.
S
To Ginny's family,
ReplyDeleteI had the privilege of being one of Ginny's midwifery faculty while she was at FNU. Her drive and perseverance were inspirational for everyone touched by her light and her spirit! I will always smile when I think of her and the wonderful legacy for her children to realize dreams no matter life's circumstances. Peace...
Deborah Karsnitz