Frank "Caesar" DiCesare

I have dreaded writing this part of my update.  As anyone close to my family knows, my wonderful stepfather, Frank, had been battling acute myeloid leukemia for almost two years.  He was diagnosed while Josh was on his last deployment but I have not blogged about it out of respect for Frank.  He was very private and didn't really like the whole world knowing what he was going through.  He never wanted any pity or sympathy, just to go about his life as normal.  He fought the cancer for a long time, even undergoing a bone marrow transplant.  The transplant failed and the leukemia became more and more aggressive as time went on.  He was receiving treatment at MD Anderson in Houston, Texas.  So it was a hard two years for him and my mom.  Mom traveled back and forth to be with him the whole time.

The weekend that we were in San Francisco, Frank traveled home to Birmingham to be with mom for a long weekend and a break from Houston.  While at home, he decided that he would stop treatment (because it was no longer effective and his quality of life was greatly diminished) and enter hospice care.  So on August 23rd, the hospice center got he and mom all set up at home in Birmingham.  I immediately flew home to visit.  I could only be there for a day, but I was so glad that I got to say goodbye to the man who I loved so much and loved me as if I was his own.  Frank had been in my life since I was 6 years old and there was no way I was letting my father leave without hugging his neck first.  Thankfully Trey was able to be there also, so we got one last weekend as a family. This is the last picture we took together.

One week, exactly, after he entered hospice Frank entered his eternal home and met Jesus face to face. He passed away early in the morning of August 31st.  While we were all so sad that he was gone, we were (and still are) so thrilled that he his no longer suffering or in any pain. And how wonderful that he is with Jesus forever.

Once he passed, the planning began for the memorial service. The DiCesare family plot is in Lakeland, Florida and Frank told mom that this is where he wanted to be buried.  So mom planned the burial in Florida for Thursday September 5th, followed by a true memorial service to honor his life in Birmingham on Saturday September 7th.  Reagan and I flew to Florida for the burial (so that Wyatt wouldn't miss too much school and Josh wouldn't miss work).  The graveside service was lovely and was exactly what Frank would have wanted.

During the service, a butterfly fluttered around the casket and the priest and just wouldn't leave.  After everyone had left the cemetery, this butterfly landed on my Rea and then on my sweet mother.  God gave us such a sweet reminder that Frank is with him and we need not worry.

After the burial, mom, Rea, me, Trey and Chelsea flew back to Birmingham for the memorial. Many more people joined us there (including Josh and Wyatt) to celebrate the life of such an amazing man.  The service in Alabama was perfect.  I'm not sure it could have gone better.  Frank truly was a blessing to all who knew him.  There were so many people there that many had to stand. After the memorial, everyone in the family went back to mom and Frank's house for a catered dinner.  It was so wonderful to feel so much support by so many people...and nice to have almost all of the people you love the most in one place.

Josh and Wyatt flew back to California the following Monday and everyone slowly started leaving and returning to normal life.  Rea and I stayed a couple of days to help mom get things back in order and just to be there in case she needed us.

While we were there, God granted me the great privilege of being in town when my very best friend, Taylor, gave birth to her third child Hannah Claire. It was so great to end such an emotional week on a positive note.

I would say that we are all doing okay.  I think we miss Frank in our own ways and we will continue to grieve for some time.  But we are rejoicing daily that he is healed and that he can look down on us and smile.