799.My husband Wayne D Eckman passed away on February 21, 2016, and each day I'll post a previous story about his life for 3 weeks.
This post was first on my blog on November 21, 2013, just a week after I started it. I plan to post each night for the next 3 weeks, a special post about my husband Wayne and his life. In 3 weeks it will be one year since he passed away, February 21, 2016.
------------------------Posted originally # 9, on November 21, 2013.
Wayne has been the recipient of many blessings, ever since he was born. The night Wayne and Blaine were born, each weighing about 4 pounds, they were not expected to live. They were immediately given a name and a Priesthood blessing, and in the blessing they were promised they would live a mature life, and fill their missions in life. When Wayne received his Patriarchal blessing, the Patriarch, who didn't know him, stated that he was living today because of the power of the Priesthood. When he was about 60, he was in the hospital for diverticulitis, but recovered with heavy antibiotics. Blaine filled his mission in life at age 68, and at age 69, Wayne had a his greatest health crisis.
We had been in Connecticut on a Portuguese speaking mission, and came home in March 2000, early to help my sister Mavis, who was in the middle of a severe chemo series for colon cancer. (She is still alive thankfully!) After being with her for about 2 months, Vina, my other sister, came up and stayed with Mavis, while we went down to southern California to visit with our son, on Memorial Day weekend, the end of May. We had visited with all others in and close to Utah. Wayne felt tired during what was to be a 3 day trip, but the morning we were planning to leave he felt particularly dizzy, and weak, and actually fell out of bed.
We decided to take him to an emergency room about 20 minutes away. There was a wheelchair accidentally left outside the hospital, which was vital to help him get in. I hurried in and told them we thought my husband was suffering a stroke, and they took him right in. His oxygen level was very low, and they immediately gave him oxygen and began to ask him questions. He said he was 73, when he was 69, and said he was from Salt Lake even though we lived in St. George. Other things were not clear in his mind, and he soon began murmuring in Swedish.
They did many tests throughout the day, and ruled out a stroke, and then they literally ran down the hall pushing him in his bed to the intensive care unit. His diagnosis was respiratory failure. This was a Sunday, and by Monday they were giving him almost 100% oxygen, and his oxygen level was still slipping. A nurse told me that if the family wanted to see him alive, they should come soon. That wasn't possible, but soon his level started to stay a bit more stable. That evening I overheard an LDS Bishop Halladay on the phone asking his counselor to come and help him give a Priesthood blessing. I asked him if they could please give a blessing to Wayne. He graciously consented, but asked me several questions, what the doctors had said, etc.
In the blessing, he blessed him that he would survive this illness, and live to have many wonderful experiences in his life. He blessed him to live to do a lot of genealogy and also Temple work. He was blessed to be able to be a strength to his family, and live to enjoy many happy times with them. He blessed him to live to care for his family and his wife. (today -- Jan 31, 2016, -- he survived almost 16 more years.)
He was blessed that as he recovered, he would have the desire to be with his family, and to do what was necessary to regain his health, that his mind would turn to those thoughts. From that time, I was at peace as to if he would survive. He was in intensive care for 12 days, and in a ward 3 more days, and then about a week at McKay's. Our oldest son and Blaine's son came down to help me drive him home. I have such faith in Priesthood blessings, and have seen the Hand of the Lord on many occasions. It took 3 or 4 months for him to recover his natural strength, but within months of that time he and I became Temple ordinance workers. After about a year, I had an operation on one foot, and decided to spend my time doing genealogy -- now called Family History.
He continued to do Temple ordinance work for about 4 or 5 years, we were called to work in the LDS Branch at "The Meadows", an assisted living place here for 2 years. We were asked to help the residents learn to do indexing in the small computer lab where a doctor who lived there had donated several nice computers. Wayne had not used a computer before, and just used his "index" fingers to type names, etc., but he got hooked! During that calling, he wasn't an ordinance worker, but developed a love and fascination for indexing. I had indexed before, and still do, but I haven't done nearly as much as he has. That was around 7 years ago, and to this date Wayne has indexed 596,441, and arbitrated 51,431 . He wants to live to do at least 1,000,000, and hopefully the Lord will allow it. I believe his life will be lengthened because of this work. He swims for 1 hour 2 or 3 times a week which helps him a lot.
He had radiation about 5 years ago for prostate cancer, and he has also had to take some time off from Temple Ordinance work, for a triple by pass open heart surgery, in Dec. 2011. Eleven months later in Nov. 2012, he had a hip replacement surgery, and had some complications then. After the 3rd day his heart beat went up to 200 beats a minute, and they had to shock his heart. Then they gave him medicine to slow his heart down, as he went into rehab. After a few days, his heart rate was down to 30 beats a minute, and they rushed him to intensive care, and we almost lost him to kidney failure because the 2 medicines, to speed up his heart and slow it down were toxic.
We have been so blessed, and if it weren't for modern medicine, Wayne wouldn't be alive, and probably me and some of our children. Life is wonderful! We are so blessed to live at this time in the world's history !
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