At 103 he was snitching a piece of cake!
Donald W. Eddy at 103
September 10, 2008. My brother, Paul from Nevada, and I drove to Sarasota, Florida to see Dad. Our sister had called a few days earlier saying that Dad was most likely on his last legs and the inevitable would probably happen within a week or so. He’d been in bed for about two weeks not wanting to get up, not wanting to shave or eat. He’d said he was tired . . .
We arrived at sunrise and met with our nephew, then drove over to see Dad. The three of us were completely surprised to see him up, dressed and in his wheelchair waiting for us! He recognized Paul saying, “Hi Paul,” and “This must be Don” as he looked into my eyes. I’d not seen him since his birthday on Thanksgiving 2007.
We returned in the evening just at meal time when this photo was made along with several others. I didn’t realize what he was doing but for whatever reason I began taking pics rapidly. He was snitching the piece of cake from his table mate sitting to his right.
Ten days later he died. Neither Paul nor I attended the funeral, which was held in Syracuse, NY. He was buried next to his father, George W. Eddy.
Back in 1962 while I was a photo student at Rochester Institute of Technology he drove from Phoenix, NY to sit for me for my assignment to make a formal portrait. It was done with a 4×5 view camera.
Donald W. Eddy at 58