My brother, Johnny, left this earthly body and stepped into the presence of Jesus Christ, March 2, 2023. In that Gazillionth of a second, he was totally transformed and was set from from all the earthly pain.
Those present with Johnny in those moments:
Our mom… Sarah Byrd Cooper
Daughter… Erica Byrd
Ex-wife… Norma Butler
Brother… Steve Byrd
Johnny raised up and spoke some words, we still try to discern, lay back and a few minutes later breathed his last.
We have pondered his last words, because we could not understand what he was saying. I believe as does our mom, the meds he was given to help him sleep, interfered with his ability to speak. Having been around a number of patients on Hospice, and conducted numerous funerals, this seems to be the new way of dealing with a terminally ill person.
This may seem like a reasonable thing to do, but it also robs the terminally ill person of the ability to speak any last words they wish to share. It also robs the family of anything the loved one wishes to say to them and visa-versa.
The other issue I have is that of basically starving a person and only giving a wet swab of their mouth, as if we are doing them some kind of favor by hastening their death. For a person who has no relationship with Christ, hastening their death is not doing them a favor. They get to Hell faster.
For a person who has a personal relationship with Christ, death means to be absent from the body but to be in the presence of Jesus Christ!
Mom had her hand over his heart when it stopped beating. She gave him his first meal as a baby, and his last meal on Monday night, February 27. He asked for some spaghetti, and mom provided it to him. He said it was, “Really Good!” It blessed her!
She also cut his finger nails for the first time as a baby, and the last time in the weeks before his death.
The weeks before his death, our mom was able to go to Villa Rica and be with him, Erica and Norma. Then he was able to go to Ozark, AL for a couple of weeks to see family and friends.
Two weeks before his death, we took him back to Georgia and mom was able to go and be with him his last days. Erica was able to spend time with her dad and help attend to his needs. Oh How He Loved Erica!
We now need to raise money to pay for the headstone, which is $1500.
Thank you for your help.
Here is the original post.
I am writing this to support my brother, Johnny Byrd, who has been diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer, Gall bladder issues including Gall Stones, and lesions on the Liver.
Johnny was a blue baby, meaning oxygen was cut off from his brain during birth because the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck. There were few resources to help a baby with oxygen deprivation in the early 60’s. The complications have made life very difficult for him.
Although he struggled to learn to read, write and speak, he did graduate high school and attended college where he became a welder, got married, and had a daughter.
He worked as a welder for several years, until his eyes were damaged. Afterward, he started his 30+ year career at Kroger. He served as an assistant meat manager for several years and was preparing to apply for the meat manager position when he became sick.
Then the illness came on fast! His abdominal pain first appeared to be digestive track issues but later revealed Gall Bladder problems including Gall Stones. Then came the worst news, which was the diagnosis of stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer on April 7, 2022.
The medical bills are growing, but his income has dropped. Johnny’s FMLA was approved in May, and he has just started receiving his disability from work, but it is less than half his regular pay.
To compound the challenges, his daughter was diagnosed with COVID-19 in January 2021 and almost died. She lived with an aneurism and seven blood clots on her brain for over a year. A test a few weeks ago revealed they were gone.
Stress for Johnny has been astronomical. We can help relieve some of that stress, so he has a better chance of beating cancer, and at the same time help reduce his daughter’s stress so she is less likely to have a stroke or more blood clots.
You can do three specific things that will make a major difference:
1- Pray.
2- Donate.
3- Communicate.
Thank you for making a difference!
Steve Byrd,
Johnny’s brother
PS. Who’s in the photo? Front left is our mom, Sarah Byrd Cooper, and in the back is Erica Byrd, Johnny’s daughter. Johnny (70lbs lighter) and our sister, Barbara Byrd Logan.