Dear Friends,

As you might have heard by now, my dad, Tom, passed away on Monday, September 5, 2016.
Despite his 25+ years of fighting Polycythemia Vera/Myelofibrosis, he never gave up, he never had a poor attitude, nor did he ever dwell on his struggles. He was always terminal, but never defeated. That is probably why we were not expecting it and were absolutely overcome with how quickly it happened.Dad closed on his property in Napa in May. I had been in Napa to clean out his home in April and to help my Aunt Linda and step-brother Grady move him into a temporary assisted living facility in Fairfield. He wasn’t in great shape, but was managing fairly well. When we met up with him in San Diego on July 1st, it was obvious things had deteriorated rapidly. He was scheduled to move to Atlanta in the beginning of September, but after seeing his condition, we quickly bumped up the timeline. Dad was in a lovely higher-end apartment community, 5 minutes from my home in Atlanta by July 23rd. He closed the following week on his condo in San Diego. The next six weeks in Atlanta included a hospital stay, many doctors appointments, sweet times with his children and grandchildren, but also a final hospital stay. A week ago Monday, he was admitted into the hospital for dehydration and malnutrition. We thought it was due to his narrowed esophagus or congestive heart failure, the result of radiation treatments from years past. We got the news on Thursday that the esophagus was clear, but the MRI showed that the disease had spread to his brain. His brain was struggling with muscle coordination and his kidneys were failing, as well. On Wednesday I was told he had 6 months. On Thursday they said 3 months. On Saturday morning, I was told hours. We went home Saturday with Hospice care. He got to see his grandchildren once more and be back in his own bed. I know that my Dad was not ready, but he had told me several times over the past few months that he was weary. By Monday, he was ready to say good bye. He passed away peacefully Monday morning. I had just shared with him, “Everybody has been texting and calling, Dad. Everyone loves you so very much. It is a beautiful blue-sky morning here and the weather is cooler…just like California.”

The day we brought him home, my daily Bible verse was:
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭11:28‬
My Dad had a quiet, but very strong faith. I am confident that he is now where he always hoped to be and finally experiencing rest.

Our hope is to have a Memorial Service for Dad in January or February, back in California. We would love for you all to join us. I will be sure to forward details as soon as possible. Please feel free to forward this, as I am still gathering my Dad’s contacts. I wish I could have called each of you…but it really would have been January before I would finish! It would be a huge help if you could each respond with your current information..thank you.

There are not enough words to express my gratefulness to all of his dear friends…lifelong and recent…as well as his colleagues…past and present. You have all been wonderfully supportive of my Dad throughout the 25 years he faced his disease. I’m sure he would agree that you all contributed to his perseverance. 

He cherished you all very much. 

Warm Regards,
Tiffany Blackwood Davidson

Family information:

Tiffany & John Davidson (daughter)

Katie, Johnny & Charlie

4145 Brookview Drive SE

Atlanta, GA 30339

404-731-6399 Tiff cell

tiffydavidson@me.com

 

Tommy Blackwood (son)

Sage & Jetta

3615 Hickory Circle

Smyrna, GA 30080

678-517-4444

blackwoodth@yahoo.com

 

Grady Glasser (stepson)

5927 Central Avenue

El Cerrito, CA 94530

510-717-5864

gradyglasser@gmail.com

Eric Glasser (stepson)

18 Knoll Drive

Fairfield, CA 94534

707-416-3380

eglasser15@hotmail.com

Chris Glasser (stepson)

226 Northcreek Circle

Walnut Creek, CA 94598

925-939-5853

guitarchris613@yahoo.com

Linda Blackwood (sister)

PO Box 726

Forest Knoll, CA 94933

415-488-0943

lblackwo@sfsu.edu

Francy & Max Blackwood (brother)

Paris, France

415-450-5945

francyb@aol.com