Mary “Annette” Richardson Hughes Cooper
7/27/27 – 3/1/03
My mother, Mary “Annette” Cooper, was a very energetic and courageous woman. She never did admit that ALS was going to kill her. That made taking care of her sometimes harder and sometimes easier.
When she first started experiencing symptoms, we thought she was having small strokes. Her speech became slurred and she was falling a lot. A neurologist finally diagnosed her problem as ALS. She was accepted into Dr. Stanley Appel's clinic in Houston, TX. Dr. Appel's wife died of ALS and the clinic is dedicated to her. The clinic number and address can be found on Baylor College of Medicine's web page.*Note: Stanley H. Appel, MD is now Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurology and the Methodist Neurological Institute. He was previously at Baylor College of Medicine but Baylor and Methodist had a split up a couple of years ago and Appel went with Methodist.
My mother eventually lost her ability to walk, eat and talk. She died on March 1, 2003 in her lift chair at home. She had been unable to sleep in her bed comfortably, so she spent most of her time in her chair. She fought her disease until the very end. I will always admire her strength.
To contact Connie for further information: constancefaye100@yahoo.com
The following are some diary entries that Annette left on her computer:
A really good memory happened in my childhood. Guess I was 9 or 10. Daddy’s father was riding a bicycle and as he crossed the railroad tracks at the bottom, he fell. Landed on his head and he was dead when they found him. We drove to Georgia from Texas so Daddy could see his father’s funeral. This is the time we rode a ferry across the Mississippi. We drove down a real steep bank in this old car. I don’t remember what kind of car it was. We drove onto the raft and two men were sticking long poles down. This was the movement for the raft. I was scared? Absolutely!! As you know, we survived and we left daddy to be with his family. Mother and I went on to the country to see Mama and Papa Cloer. It had rained all that day and the road to get to my grandparent’s home was on top of this high hill. Mother wasn’t the most knowledgeable on driving a car and she had to drive up this steep, muddy, slick road to get to Mama and Papa’s. She got stuck and Mother’s family heard us. My uncles Charles, Vernon, and Hilton came down and rescued us. While I was there, I enjoyed the visit better than any other time. Mama made big fluffy biscuits, always with lots of butter and thick delicious Sorghum Syrup.
Mama was so happy to see Mother. My mother was the second child in a group of 13 children, which is why Mother didn’t want more than one child. Mama told the boys to get a chicken for breakfast. OOHH Charles and Hilton went out to choose a chicken and then wring the neck and after that, this chicken would fly all over the yard. When it stopped thrashing, we got a bucket of hot water from the water on top of the kitchen wood burning stove and sure enough we had fried chicken for breakfast. The kids could eat after the adults ate. That is why I never knew there was anything other than drumsticks.
To take a bath, we got a wash tub in the kitchen and washed. We had to go to the outhouse for necessity. I was so scared that a snake or spiders would come in. So I always perched so that I could see below. I was not going to let something get me.
Another enjoyable thing was the barn. Papa worked as a veterinarian. All the cows, pigs and mules were good and healthy. Charles and my cousin Jay would ride into the woods. Never had I seen such a beautiful sight. One day there was no one to go into the woods and I asked Mother if I could go alone. Mama said, “Be careful. A mountain lion has been in the woods.” I had no fear. I did anything. I found green moss growing along the base of trees and, believe it or not, the water in the creeks was so clear you could see the bottom. That is where I fell in love with Georgia.
I would sit on the porch listening to the grown up talk. As the night came on it would get so dark that you would not believe it if you were not there. Lighting bugs and the stars, oh they look like you could reach and pull one down. When everyone went to bed you got a lamp in the main room and took it to your bed. Most of the time the kids slept on pallets. And jokes, my oh my, we all would giggle and Mama would tell us to hush and go to sleep. And we did! In the morning you were up before daylight.
In the winter there were always coals in the fireplace and Papa would get the fire going. I loved to visit them and loved them. Mama had the most beautiful red hair. Mama would put it into a bun in the back. It was a joy to see Mama brush and twist her hair. It was very long. Going to Mama and Papa Cloer’s was the most fun. Mama’s maiden name was Couch.
Remember a day living in Fort Worth and I guess I was about 8-9-10. I went Christmas shopping with Mother and Daddy. Daddy gave me a dollar and with that dollar, went shopping in Woolworth’s 5 & 10 and was able to buy a gift for Mother, Daddy and two girl friends, Eloise and Billie Nell. Also, there was a store named Leonard Brothers where we went shopping all year. They had a big sleigh and Santa was driving it. The sleigh rose and fell down. The air was filled with music and all the kids could ride. Wow, such fun! It was like riding in a real sleigh and to this day, I remember that Christmas always.
One day when I was home alone, I got to looking in the closets and, oh my, a doll was in the closet. That evening I asked Mother, “Is Santa Claus real?” My Mother replied, “If you don’t believe in Santa Clause, then he won’t come and Christmas will be sad.” To this day I still believe in Santa Claus!
December 26, 2002
As you can see it is the day after Christmas. As always, it is sad to take all the Christmas things back to storage. I worry that this may be the last one for me. Oh well, sitting and watching TV last night, I thought of something that made me very happy.
When I was a girl, Billie Nell and I took tap dancing lessons and one day the teacher asked our mothers if we could go to a dinner party and entertain people. The teacher worked very hard making an act for us that would please everyone. Mother made me a black and white oil costume. It was short and full. I loved it. Felt like a million.
On that night Billie Nell and I were picked up by a Limousine First Class. We drove up to a huge house and people came and helped us out. I felt like a VIP. We sat at the table with all the guests. At my place there was a small green frog, playing an instrument. Oh, the dinner was delicious. One thing I remember about that meal, and do to this day, is- they took mashed potatoes and made a dent it them to put in English peas. Looked like eggs in a basket. After dinner we all went into this big room. Billie Nell and I went to put on our costumes. The teacher was there to help us. Lots of other people were playing the piano and then it was our time. The music started and we pranced out. I guess we did well because people said nice things to us. The teacher said she was so proud of us. Billie Nell and I were so star struck. That was a night to remember.
*Annette and I were pen pals for about two years, she was a wonderful friend and is missed. George
"The ability to accept responsibility is the measure of the man." Roy L. Smith
MGM
© ALS Independence 2003-10
