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 Roy
L. Jeannotte
1948 - 2001
Our family never thought twice
about heartburn. It runs rampant in the Jeannotte clan - shared discomfort
eased by Family Size cartons of over-the-counter chewables, passed from
generation to generation around the Thanksgiving table.
Thanksgiving 2001 was very
different for us. That Thursday was the last day we sat at the Thanksgiving
table with our beloved husband and father. He died early the next morning.
Heartburn had led to esophageal cancer, which quickly led to his death.
We struggle to think of the
higher cause that may have taken him from us. Perhaps those who died on
September 11 needed homes built in Heaven by one of the most respected
and compassionate general contractors in Central Massachusetts. Maybe
he had succeeded in doing what he'd been here to do, and was off to bring
love and laughs to others. Or maybe it was simply the cancer that took
him, a disease that even our greatest of heroes couldn't take to its knees.
Months later, we think back
on him and smile. Those tremendous bear hugs, the joy in his eyes, the
way he lived his 53 years of life to the absolute fullest. No one was
more proud of each of us. Today, he continues to be a role model - the
way he inspired those he worked with, the delight he brought to his friends,
the way he fried a turkey, roasted a pig and shared his best wine. And
while we will mourn our loss for years to come, we feel blessed that we
had him to love.
We started the
Roy L. Jeannotte Memorial Foundation to celebrate Roy's love for life,
and to help fund much-needed esophageal cancer research at the Johns Hopkins
Medical Center. Our family is committed to spreading the word about early
detection and to help fund research that isolates the gene that leads
to this horrible disease.
So please, visit your doctor
if you have recurring heartburn and do whatever you can do to help our
cause. With time and the right resources, we can beat this.
Thank you for your support,
Ann Marie, Seth, Elena, Rachel
and Allison Jeannotte
(pictured with Elizabeth Montgomery, M.D., center)
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