Cheryl & Frank Kammerer
What was the happiest moment of your life?
My happiest moment was when Cheryl accepted my marriage proposal. She was already my best friend and we always had a great time together. I had Marsha, my daughter that lived with me, and Cheryl readily accepted her. We had another daughter, Elizabeth, to complete our family. Cheryl was great wife and loving mom to us all, and I never left the toilet seat up again!
Who has been most influential in your life?
What a difficult question. I would have to say, in order of appearance, My father who taught me to work with my hands, my uncles, who showed me the value of humor, and of course, Cheryl, who taught me how to put all of this knowledge together to prepare for what was to happen. Thank God for her being in my life
What advice or quote did you always try to live by?
You are never wrong about giving someone the benefit of doubt.When I go to Giving Voice Foundation, or the Center for Memory and Inclusion events, it really takes a few weeks to determine which of the couple are the caregivers!Now I can say that I have more friends with dementia than I have with my other friends.My dementia friends are witty, creative, very funny, and just as friendly as they can be.
What is one memory from your past you cherish?
Cheryl and I would pack the girls up and we would go camping at General Butler State Park for the weekends. Cheryl would cook dinner over the fire. We loved going there because they had so many activities. We all played bingo and we got the biggest laugh when our girls called bingo and their gift was a rooster tooth pick holder, or the lucky horse shoe wind chime. We still have these things, by the way.
Any regrets or advice you’d give to a younger you?
EARLY SCREENINGS! If you see, or mostly notice something ofo with you or your loved one, talk to a doctor, and don’t let them snowball you. If they don’t find anything wrong, you’ve made a good choice. If they do find something wrong and it’s early enough, may be able to slow these awful diseases down and have a better future, and you made good choice. Prepare in advance, because some of these appointments are a year out, get you on a list, call us back in 6 months, kind of thing.
Anything else you wish to share?
I had to place Cheryl into a Memory Care facility in July 2025. It was the most difficult thing that I had ever done. Big Boys Do Cry.
