Shirley

My mother, Shirley Almer, had a lot of SISU; which is what Finnish people call a person with spunk, fortitude, and determination. In 1990, after the unexpected death of her husband, Shirley took over the family’s bowling alley and assisted with financing a second bowling center in the area. After retiring she continued being as dynamic as ever in the bowling league and though gardening, birdwatching, and spending time with her five children and four grandchildren. She was committed to her Minnesota community, leading an active life with friends and family. That is why her death came as such a shock to our family.  

In May of 2007, Mom had a couple dime-sized spots of cancer diagnosed on her right lung. She decided to have it removed at the University of Minnesota and was subsequently diagnosed cancer free. She took a family trip to Florida a year later to celebrate with her children and grandchildren and it was such a joy to see her enjoying life and laughing after that terrible scare.

Then, in late July 2008, she suffered a seizure and was diagnosed with a brain tumor. The prognosis was hopeful, and she was determined to do whatever it took to beat cancer for a second time. She underwent brain radiation. My brother, Mike, and I watched in horror as she suffered another seizure which caused some issues on her right side as well as swallowing and speech hardships. She was required to stay at the University hospital but fought back through rehab and regained the use of her limbs despite some doctor’s prognosis. It was through sheer determination and a can-do attitude she overcame all that, never ever complaining. One of her wonderful rehab nurses told me she was a “shining light” and that she was amazing.

Mom then had a treatment session with a gamma knife, which is a pinpoint precision procedure to zap the remaining cancer cells. She was released in early October to recuperate with our family and in late October she was once again declared cancer free by the University of Minnesota.

Unfortunately, Mom contracted a urinary tract infection around Thanksgiving where once again she needed to check in short-term to a rehab care facility in Brainerd for care and treatment. She couldn’t wait to get home and even suggested getting a puppy from an acquaintance.

Her short-term stay was supposed to end the Monday before Christmas, when she would then join the family for the holidays. Unfortunately, she began to complain of stomach cramping and also had diarrhea. There was a downward spiral from that point. The family was absolutely stunned to learn that on the day before her scheduled release from the rehab facility, the doctors were giving her just hours to live. It was very unexpected and equally hard to fathom how she could possibly have gotten to this point. We ended up saying our tearful goodbyes and watching her last breaths on Sunday, December 21, 2008.

The holidays were non-existent and mattered little. Her wake and funeral were the following weekend. It was just after the New Year that my sister Ginger was informed by the Minnesota Department of Health about the positive test for Salmonella. A week or so earlier she had unknowingly consumed Salmonella-laced peanut butter while in her immune-compromised state of health. Now that we understood that pneumonia wasn’t the cause of her death our grief was replaced by anger as we struggled to accept this very preventable tragedy. Our family feels cheated. My mom should be with us today.

Shirley was a proud mother, a proud businesswoman, and a proud American. She fought hard for the things she believed in. She always liked to fly the US flag along with the Finnish flag, which was her heritage. If it was one of her kids who passed away from Salmonella-tainted food, or one of the many other contaminants present in our food supply these days, there is no doubt that she would be as outraged as I am today. She would be doing the same thing her family is doing in her memory right now: telling her story in order to effect change.

My mom loved this country but was terribly let down by a broken and ineffective food safety system. She was let down in the worst possible way by the very government whose responsibility it is to protect its citizens. We cannot continue to ignore the public health threat caused by poorly regulated and contaminated foods. We cannot allow food safety to be continually underfunded, exposing unsuspecting Americans to deadly pathogens. We need strong laws, regulations, and effective enforcement to protect our families.

Cancer couldn’t claim her, but peanut butter did.