From Carmen

I am deeply saddened with the news of Roni’s passing. I know that he was ready to present a strong fight against this terrible disease that struck him. We all had high hopes that he would take the chemotherapy and recover. Unfortunately, he was taken from us too soon. But we are certain that Roni now is in a much better place than us. Roni was a good person; a decent person; caring and friendly, who never said no to anything that we asked him. He was always in a good mood. He stopped doing what he was doing whenever you needed his help. Always agreeable to fulfill your needs; always smiling and making us feel better. Roni, we will miss you. Please pray for us and send us your blessings from heaven. May you rest in peace. Our deep condolences to Roni’s family. We will pray that you will find peace and consolation in knowing that God received Roni in his kingdom, and that he is now enjoying the company of angels.

A Bump in the Road

We learned today that Roni has suffered a set back in his progress. At the beginning of the week Roni started developing a "C-diff" Infection (you can read more about C-diff or Clostridium Difficile Infections here). This caused him a lot of discomfort and we learned today he has been moved to CCU. Mary has told us that Roni will probably need surgery and may need to have his colon removed. It's important for us all to pray for Roni at this time. Let us trust he has the preserverance and strength to heal from this infection and surgery. I know Roni is thankful for all the wonderful visits he has had from his Calder Family. Let's continue to send those positive thoughts his way.

From Amalia:

"Jian, Erica and I went to see Roni this morning and he was no eating much but talking a lot and in good spirit."



From Jenny:

"Dear Friends,

I went to see Rony on Saturday and he looked good to me: he is trim (lost 30 pounds), didn't loose his hair, and his sense of humor is intact. His doctor assured him that he is doing very well.

Rony mentioned that now that he is stronger and that his hemoglobin, platelets, bone marrow, etc. are normal, doctors will start with another round of chemotherapy – apparently, there are three or four.

It is expected that with the second round of chemotherapy his blood values will go down and that he will need blood transfusion again. But, since he already has the experience with the first round of chemo, the effects of this one won’t catch him by surprise, and he will probably adapt better to the nausea, shivering and other unpleasant, but temporary chemo effects. The doctor told him that probably for Father’s day he will be back at his home for a much desired break of a few days, before he goes back to the hospital. This is part of the normal process of his recuperation.

He said quite moved that all of us at the Calder Library family are his family too, and that he is very grateful for the prayers, loving thoughts and kindness that we all have sent his way.

Jenny"

Will You Be My Date to My Best Friend's Wedding?

Dear Roni,

I know it is last minute, since the wedding is next weekend, but would you be my date to a wedding in Minneapolis? I'm Maid of Honor, and would prefer not to go alone. You'll fit right in with the wedding. I hope you can make it.

-Vedana

PS: I really hope you can come Roni, and to show how excited I am about the prospect I'm attaching a picture of you lecturing with me to the medical students.

Congratulations, Roni!!!!

I'm thrilled to hear the awesome news! Everyone knew you could do it.

Take care,

Tanya

Roni Around the World: Part Three

First off, Jenny would like to share some EXCELLENT news from Roni:

"Just talked to Rony and Mary - they said that his improvement has been immense. All his reference values are normal – hemoglobin, platelets, bone marrow – you name it, its all fine. He still needs to go to a second round of chemo to make sure that the bad cells are totally eliminated. He will eventually be going home for a small break – catheters still in place – and then back to the hospital for his chemo. A nurse will be seeing him at home everyday to clean the catheters and make sure everything is going as planned. The doctor told him that he is doing much better than any of the patients in the floor. He says that he feels very strong psychologically, very solid."

We couldn't ask for better news! Thank you to everyone for your thoughts, prayers, and visits. I know we're all grateful to hear this update.

To celebrate, here are a few more pictures from "Roni's trip" to DC!



Roni was very excited to see the Capitol building and "walk" the Mall.

He even managed to make a few new friends at the American Museum of Natural History.

And last, but not least, he enjoyed a twilight visit to the Lincoln Memorial.

Thank you, Roni, for the great DC memories! It was a lot of fun to "bring" you on our trip!

~Emily and Brenda

Roni Around the World: Part Two

"Roni" has had a very eventful weekend in DC!

His first stop was to eat authentic Native American food at the Museum of the American Indian. He/We especially enjoyed the flat bread and buffalo.



Then it was the Air and Space Museum, which Roni told us was a museum he's always wanted to go to.



Here's Roni surrounded by space shuttles and planes!



Samuel (Ronairo)'s favorite section was the Samuel Langley gallery of early flight.



Roni's favorite plane was hands-down the Wright Brothers Flyer of 1903.



He even got a chancel to "fly" a plane!



Stay tuned for further DC adventures!

~Emily and Brenda

Roni Around the World: Part One

Dear Roni,
Since Dr. Moore, Brenda, and I are on work trips, we thought of a creative way to "bring" you along. We'll be inviting you to "join" us in Arizona, DC, and (once Kim's birthday comes around) on a cruise.
Hope it brings a smile to your face!
Emily (and the Calder family)


An update from Dr. Moore in Tempe:

Roni said the AMIA conference is great but he likes the hotel and view of the golf course even better! Except for the heat!








Roni at NLM:

Brenda and Emily enjoyed bringing Roni to the "mother ship" - the National Library of Medicine in Bethesda, Maryland.

We miss you, Roni, and wish you were here!

A Note from Jenny

Dearest Rony:

I know that you were in pain, that your mouth is sore, that you are taking only liquids, that your platelets are a little down, and that, of course, you feel a little down yourself.

But, hermanito, remember that these annoyances are only temporary, and that full recovery will be here any time soon: it’s just like a bratty little child that likes to take its own darn time. Have faith, it is just around the corner, taking baby steps at a time! :-)

Jenny

Weathering the Storm

Brenda and I had the chance to visit Roni during our lunch break today. He was happy to have visitors, as always, and is so grateful to everyone who has taken time to visit him while he's at Jackson.

He recently finished a very strong round of chemo and is trying to recover from that. He is in some pain, especially from mouth sores, but he is glad that the chemo is helping. He had been suffering terrible headaches, but the doctors suggested he have three coffees a day, and - believe it or not - that seems to have made the headaches go away!

We told him that BioMed is as busy as ever and can't wait to have him back at home in the department. We also mentioned that some of the library faculty will be traveling to DC for a conference, and we had fun talking about all there is to do in DC. Brenda and I have a creative idea of how we can help Roni "travel" to DC with us, so stay tuned to the blog for further updates.

Thanks again to everyone who has been visiting Roni. Bringing the Calder library family to him is a blessing and very much appreciated by him, his wife, his parents, and his family and friends.

I'd rather be fishing!

Brenda and I visited Roni yesterday at Jackson. While we were there, he received two phone calls from his cousin who is on a fishing trip in the Keys. Roni was enjoying hearing about all the fun they're having and suggesting tips for catching the 5 feet fish that are escaping his cousin's fishing rods. He can't wait to go fishing soon!

Roni is in great spirits, but he expressed some frustration over how many interruptions he gets in the day from the hospital staff. He know that it's for the best, but it makes it hard to read or watch TV or even play cards.

The best thing for Roni now is to have visitors. Then he can share stories and laughs in between the nurse visits. I have to say, every time Brenda and I have visited him, he's had at least three other visitors in the room. What a popular guy! I'm so glad that so many of Roni's Calder family has been able to visit him while he's here on campus. How lucky that he's only a 5-10 minute walk away.

Yesterday was Roni's mom's birthday, so we all wished her a happy birthday. It was good to meet his parents, who are very friendly and welcoming. He even talked about how his mom had made him soup with codornice. Then we spent the next 10 minutes trying to figure out what that bird was in English. We still aren't sure what the answer is! It might be quail...

Roni is happy to report, as Jenny has also in the Comments of this blog, that his tumor is down 90%. This is great news! They are continuing with the chemotherapy, and he guesses he'll be in the hospital for at least three more weeks, although that is still somewhat up in the air. He certainly sends his love to you all!

Roni--the world's best "plastic surgeon"

I'd been living with the worst photo ID, courtesty of UM's Security department, for years. I finally went to see Roni, the miracle worker. He took a new photo, photo-shopped out the early grays and "skin imperfections," and I'm now a new woman! When I went back to Security, I showed them the difference between the two IDs, and he said, "yeah, but that's a glamour shot." No, it wasn't a glamour shot, it was Roni's artistic and photographic talent.

Thank you, Roni!!!!

Roni on Friday

As I said in my post on Friday, I visited Roni after work. While I was there I was able to take a picture of him, so I am posting it here so everyone can see how well he is.

Pictures of Roni

Geddy just sent me two great pictures of Roni doing what Roni does best - taking pictures and working one-on-one with our patrons.

Roni - the Photoshop Whiz



Roni and the Dean

Ronnie's Dream

Last night Ronnie had a dream that he parked somewhere at night and could not find his car and he went around the block looking for the car. He spent the whole night looking for his car, and then nothing, no car. He's been pondering the meaning of this dream.

I'm here at the hospital with him now. He's in good spirits, but has no appetite. He's sleepy, and goes in and out of sleep, and just wants to be able to eat since he has been given a lot of food. Luckily there is a fridge in his private room.

Welcome to Roni's Calder Family Blog!

We've created this blog to share all the news about Roni and his treatment. This will be a great way to share what we hear. If you get a text or have the chance to visit him, please make sure to share that information with everyone. You can either comment in the "Comments" section or email me (Emily) and I will post it here. I know we are all concerned about Roni and are eager to follow his progress. This will be a place for everyone to stay up-to-date, as well as a place to share encouragement, hopes, thoughts, and prayers for Roni and his family.

As of May 5th, the physicians treating Roni believe he has Burkitt's lymphoma. You can read more about it here: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001308.htm. He is currently at Jackson and prefers to be reached at the number in his room. Please contact me directly if you need those details.

Roni started his first round of chemotherapy on Tuesday, May 4th. It was a difficult night for him, but he was already feeling better the next day. Roni's positive attitude and outlook are helping him through this time.

Quick reminders: Roni also goes by Samuel, so you may hear others refer to him by that name. His wife's name is Marielena (you can call her "Mari"), and his daughter's name is Annette. Annette is a UM student and has been visiting Roni in the hospital frequently. Mari stays with Roni and will be parking in our Calder parking lot, so be sure to say hi to her if you see her there.

If you are able to visit Roni or learn more information from him or his wife, please make sure to share it here. Thank you all! Let's work together to show Roni how much he means to the Calder Family!