ROSS TAYLOR

Photo Stories: Gloria's Goodbye

Gloria Morin was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. She has been given one month to live by her doctors. This story focuses on her last days before her pending death and the struggles which she and her loved ones face in the difficult days ahead. 

  • Mike Morin bends to kiss his wife, Gloria, before tucking her into bed. The two have been married for almost 30 years.
  • Gloria smiles while talking with one of her friends. Gloria was also one who was quick to smile - however, this was one of the last times she would feel well enough to smile as the cancer takes a quick turn for the worse.
  •  Gloria's husband, Mike Morin, helps her back inside the house after a talk in the yard - it was one of Gloria's last days outside.
  • The weight of her impending death weighs heavy on Gloria one afternoon. Gloria had just found out she had less time than she realized to live.
  • Gloria's dog, Sassy, looks quizzically at her while she gets an injection to help deal with her pain.
  • Mike lays out and counts Gloria's pills while Gloria strikes up another cigarette. Gloria's doctors tell her that at this point, whether she smokes or not won't make a difference in her survival so she opts to continues smoking.
  • Tethered to her oxygen tank, Gloria peers outside on one of the last few days she is able to stand. Her world shrinks as the disease progresses.
  •  Mike comforts Gloria moments after she vomited in the bathroom. As her illness progresses, she becomes more sick more often.
  • Sassy keeps Gloria company on one of her last days while her health continued to declined. Family members commented on how Gloria's sickness impacted Sassy's behavior as the dog seemed more depressed and anxious as Gloria continued to get worse.
  • Gloria's daughter Sharon holds an ice-pack to her face ion order to keep some of the swelling down. As the cancer spreads, her body's ability to process fluids diminishes and in return retains more.
  • Gloria's children and her hospice nurse help Gloria out of bed into a chair to help avoid sores on her body from laying in bed.
  • Mike rests briefly one evening before going to sleep beside his wife. In Gloria's last days Mike pulled out this mattress so he could sleep at her side.
  • As her death draws near, members of Gloria's family come from out of town to pay their respects and visit for a final time.
  •  Moments after Gloria's death, her husband, Mike, turns away as it's hard to see her like this. 'God, I love you,' he said under his breath. 'It's hard to get that close to someone.'
  •  Mike carries his wife's body away with help from funeral home employees.
  • As the crowd begins to file out from the funeral home during the viewing ceremony, Mike bids his wife goodbye with a kiss.
  • Mike Morin hugs his sisters, Lisa Langlois, left, and Lynn Flynn after her funeral services.
  • It's a rough moment for Mike as he struggles with his wife's absence.{quote}I have no idea what I'm going to do,{quote} Morin said.
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