In Memorium

I got some sad news a few days ago. A very close friend of mine, Nancy Fackler, has died. I wish I had time to fully describe Nancy, she was special and one of a kind. Nancy and I were in the nursing program at FSU together. We spent our junior year in Miami, Florida doing studies in several specialty areas of our nursing program, and we shared an apartment that year. Although we had been friends before that time, during that year she and I solidified the foundation for our long, close friendship. Nancy was a terrible cook, but that was probably one of the few things she did not do well. Most everyone who ever met Nancy knew she was fun, adventurous, fearless, and ready to try most anything. She was always the life of the party and she never lacked for a date. Boys loved her because she would pretty much try anything, at least once. Over the years she earned her private pilots license, water skiied, sky dived, spelunked, scuba dived, and was an excellent down hill skiier, to name only a few of her endeavours. She was always a super tennis player and at 50 something was ranked in tennis in Florida. She loved to party and she loved kids. Her nieces could vouch for that! One time I asked her why she had never had any children. Her response was, "I guess I was just too busy." When we were stationed in Moscow, in the early 1970's, Nancy came to visit us. She somehow managed to make her way, unaided across the Soviet border between East and West Berlin and from there to Moscow. During her visit we took her to a Russian restaurant for dinner one night. When a Russian man asked her to dance, she said "Sure." When she returned to the table, she was laughing and said, "He kept saying 'You - Me go bed.' " Her response to him was "I don't speak Russian." I could relate many more "Nancy" stories that would bring a smile to your face, but time and space do not allow it.

Nancy followed in her father's footsteps as a member of the US Navy. She joined the Navy Nurse Corps as a 2nd Lt. after we finished our nursing education program at FSU. She served two years active duty at that time. Nancy remained in the Navy Nurse Corps Reserves and served a second two year active duty stint in Japan during the Viet Nam War caring for the war wounded. Had her father lived to see it, as a Chief Petty Officer, he would have burst his buttons with pride. She rose up through the ranks and ultimately became the second Navy nurse to rise to the rank of Rear Admiral in the Navy Nurse Corps Reserves. One Christmas in the late 1980's we got a Christmas card from Nancy saying she had decided to retire from the Reserves. A few weeks later I overheard Joe taking a telephone call. I heard him say, "Admiral! Admiral?!" Seems she had been promoted and would soon be taking over as Commander of the United States Navy Nurse Corps Reserves!! The Top Dog! The Big Poobah!! We were so proud. A few months after taking over this command Nancy began to experience a variety of unexplainable symptoms - vision problems, memory lapses, etc. After a myriad of tests, and seeing a variety of physicians from Mayo Clinic to Massachusetts General, Nancy was diagnosed with a very rare brain disorder very similar to Alzheimer's Disease. It was a terrible shock to realize that someone so vital and alive would gradually loose all capacity to be so. We attended Nancy's official retirement ceremony at the U.S. Naval Yard in Washington D.C. It was a wonderful ceremony and made us aware of how important a position she had held. Over the years that have followed, Nancy gradually progressed from these minor symptoms to total blindness and inability to recognize anyone. She became totally dependent on others for all her most basic needs. The one blessing of it all is that Nancy did not realize what was happening for most of it. Now that she is gone, I am thankful that it is over. She touched many lives and will be missed. Goodbye my friend. RIP.