On October 22, 2015 My mother's struggle ended. Mary Louise Stanton, my mom, passed away suddenly in our apartment . Her mobility was severly limited and dementia kept taking away more and more of her every day. Not just stealing memories but also her joy and her love of life. The day before she passed she was clear headed and she did tell me how much she loved me..I will remember that moment forever as the fog was getting thicker around her mind every day. As her only child, I gradually became her full time caregiver in the last 3 years, and we soldiered on.......together. My mother worked her entire life, as an abused child she was shuttled from foster home to foster home until she was taken in by a wonderful, kind family and given a balanced environment and love. Despite her abuse, she went to college, worked until retirement, and would help whomever she could. She learned firsthand as a child that this world could be brutal place..yet she always had hope and believed in the good of people, focusing on the beauty of the world while not closing her eyes at the injustice. She had compassion, integrity, honesty and one wicked , often bawdy, sense of humor. She instilled in me what right and wrong was and despite some bumps as a teenager, she helped make me the woman I am. Her passing was very sudden and as her caregiver the past three years I am now trying to figure out how to pick up and begin my life again. I have no regrets about my decision to delay other endeavors these last years and not let her be alone and afraid as the disease progressed. Her biggest fear was not death, it was being unloved and abandoned. It was not an option to ever have to feel that again. I wanted to give her back the love she had given me my whole life. Yes, the road was difficult and exhausting, but I would be by her side and do it again with no hesitation. She was my mom and I was her only child. Watching her wither and her mind unravel nearly broke me more than once. I am thankful she closed her eyes, and left this world as peacefully as possible. It was the one reprieve that the disease gave her. These last years as her increasing needs required most of my time, I was unable to work as much I was accustomed. Her illness caused her to mismanage her finances until it became aware to me, and I was too late. I am reaching out and these funds are desperately needed for financial obligations, her funeral and memorial expenses. I've never been one to ask for help, always tried to make due myself. But I really need your help. I will never forget your contribution, no matter what the amount and will strive to pay it forward in the future, remembering your generousity I promise to do the same in kind. Thank you very much for your time and reading some of my mother's story.Tracy Zajdel
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