MY BROTHER BOB

JULY 15, 2007.

I try to recall anything of significance that happened on each day, This is part of my daily routine. On this particular date, I remember my brother, Bob. He was nearly four years younger, but we were very close. Today is his birthday. He would have been 85!
While he and his wife, Jackie, raised their nine children, his short life ended with much suffering and sadness. He died on May 31, 1984 at home in Ypsilanti, Michigan. He was only 63! Bob served with the Coast Guard during World War II, and received his honorable discharge in December, 1945.
A month later - January, 1946 - he was critically injured in a late Saturday night auto crash. The drunk driver who hit their car was killed. Bob and his girl friend were riding in the back seat of the car. She received a severe leg injury that required surgery. While they were able to save her leg, it ended up shorter than her other one. I often have wondered if seat belts and air bags, were available back then, would have made any difference?
Bob received a broken neck, an almost severed leg and internal injuries. St. Joseph’s hospital, in Ann Arbor, listed his condition as critical, and they did not expect him to live. They had to amputate his severed leg when the couldn’t establish circulation. He remained in their Intensive Care unit for six weeks - with around the clock nursing care! Bob eventually recovered enough to be released by the hospital, to recover at home, with our parents care. Bob didn’t have any medical coverage - it was non-existent or very rare 60 years ago. Our Mom and Dad cashed in all their War Bonds (their life-savings) to pay for Bob’s medical expenses.
Years later, Bob confided in me that “there never was a day, when he didn’t have a headache. Yet, he returned to work at Ford Motor Company in Ypsilanti.
Bob has been dead for over 23 years now, and I still think about him often, and miss him very much.