Alex Tyree
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Alex died peacefully at home on Wednesday, February 24, 2010.
Alex Tyree's Memorial Service, Sunday, March 14. Click here or scroll down the page for details.
Alex Tyree (and his wife, Cheri) showed us that suffering can be faced with dignity and humor in the company of friends, and that the fear of death can be replaced with recognition and wonder of God's love and care.
Doctors had told Alex Tyree he had only a few months to live with the challenge of cancer, but his upbeat witness was strong on Sunday, October 4, 2009 to his fellow members at our church.
We may not be able to choose our situation, said Alex, but we can choose our response. With an active faith, any situation can be called blessed. In this, he referred to the teachings of psychiatrist Victor Frankl, a survivor of the Nazi concentration camps, who taught that meaning can be found in all situations, but often only if you search for it.
Links
- Alex's obituary. (Click on the "Obituaries" link, then on the link to Alex Tyree.)
- Gary Soulsman's most recent article in the News Journal.
- Gary Soulsman's Christmas Day 2009 article.
- Nine photos of Alex taken by a SsAM member.
Below are the comments made by his wife, Cheri, on Alex's CarePages blog following his death.
I am so sorry to tell you that Alex died at 3 o’clock this morning. He died in his own bed just as he wished, with his wonderful DE Hospice nurse Eileen and me holding his hands, peaceful music playing and a lavender candle scenting the room. We have been reading and talking lately about transitioning being like a birth, sometimes messy and uncomfortable, but a journey towards embracing the lightness of spirit.
Yesterday Alex had 4.3 liters of fluid drained from his abdominal cavity at Christiana Hospital as an outpatient procedure, that made him a little more comfortable. Our kind neighbors, Rod and Barb spent six and a half hours making a run to the lab for us and then driving us to and from the hospital and waiting for the procedure in the pouring rain.
By the evening however, Alex just couldn’t get comfortable. I tried to manage the pain with some meds, but by midnight we needed to call on the professionals, and Eileen arrived at 1 am. Some humor – at one point Alex said, “I have 2 women in bed with me!” We massaged him and held his hands, told stories and tried to make him comfortable. Later he said, “kisses, kisses” and proceeded to give me lots of kisses. After that he weakly said, ”sedation.” We had to have him repeat it 3 times before Eileen understood him. She gave him a good dose of morphine which relaxed him, calmed his breathing and he peacefully and I think, joyfully, embraced the light and the Big Love welcomed him at 3 am!
The wonderful thing about Delaware Hospice is how peaceful the whole experience can be and how I could have exactly what I wanted. I wanted to spend time with Alex’s body before it was hauled away, which is exactly what we did. Mary Jane, his supervisor came to say goodbye and we three sat around Alex on the bed and reminisced, told stories, hugged and cried together. I had time alone to cry and pray and feel the warmth left in him. It was a beautiful experience.
Blessings to you all as we all bid safe passages to our beloved father, friend, brother and husband, Alex
Love, Cheri
Alex Tyree's Memorial Service
Memorial Service
St. Elizabeth’s Catholic Church
1500 Cedar Street (at Clayton)
Wilmington, DE
Sunday, March 14, at 2:00 p.m.
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