Warren's Story
“Hospice of the Panhandle taught me how to care for my wife so she could stay home.”
Reva, the love of Warren Mickey’s life, wanted to stay in the home where she lived from birth despite the fact leukemia was eroding her health and limiting her days. Warren shares how Hospice of the Panhandle supported him and Reva so he could care for his wife safely at their home and empower her to pass away with dignity in the place she preferred.
Theirs was a romance for the ages. Reva and Warren were married more than 58 years, raised a family, farmed the land, got involved in local politics, and lived in the only house that Reva and Warren called home.
And when she became ill, there was no question that Warren would care for her, gently and lovingly. “She loved sitting on the porch, just looking out at the farm, enjoying nature and looking over at the fields,” Warren said. “And she never, ever complained, not once during those last months.”
Reva was diagnosed with leukemia and, before the couple opted for care from Hospice of the Panhandle, used home health services. Reva, who was 82 when she passed, was a Hospice patient in late 2021, for about four months. Warren talked about caring for her for seven months.
“They (the Hospice team) always gave her all the care that she needed when they were here,” Warren said. “They gave me the technical expertise to do what I needed to do — to change the bed, to give her medicine. The care was outstanding.”
“Reva and I talked it over and made the decision (for both of us) that we both wanted to die at home,” Warren said. “So that was the plan, and I made sure that happened (when she became ill).”
Warren says one of the things he is most grateful for is that Reva was cared for by the Hospice team with dignity and she was able to live her last months on her own terms. “Reva was pain-free (until) the day she passed,” Warren said. “And she died in the same room in which she was born.”
“If you have a loved one or a family member who is in ill health and needs help, don’t wait,” Warren said. “Call Hospice of the Panhandle.”
