A lot of time has passed

I just wanted to drop a quick update as it has been quite some time since I've been able to do much and I'm sure many have wondered how things are going.

Many know that my wife was diagnosed with cancer in August of 2010 and since then I've been focusing on her and her needs. In the midst of all this, my mom was also diagnosed with cancer about the same time. She passed away near the end of January this past year (2011), so there was that taking my mind away from things during that time frame.

Then my wife's dad started having problems and needed help. During May and June we both went over from time to time to care for him and my wife's mom. I was placed in charge of there estate and there care. By the end of June he passed away and we then decided to move Kate's mom in with us to care for. This required me taking care of there estate and getting everything in order.

During this same time my wife (Kate) was fighting infections left and right and started going down again. Near the end of Sept. she passed away. This left me with another close loss to try and deal with along with taking care of her mom and now two estates to get in order.

The rest of the year was spent getting the estates in order, selling the in-laws home and most of there odds and ends. I was still taking care of her for as long as I was able. Later in the year (November time frame), she was noticeably worse as far as mental and physical strength. After some research I determined she had advanced with her dementia. By January this was confirmed by our doctor. She had evolved to moderate to extreme state of dementia and requiring me placing her in a memory care facility close to her family in the Portland area. My taking care of her was a 24/7 job not allowing me any time for myself nor my work.

I just completed moving her into a great place that can handle her progression without needing to move her again. I am now back home with some catching up to do on the personal matters, but will soon be getting my life back in order and yes, getting back to work and creating new sculptures again.

Some might be asking if I will be going back to Worlds this year. I made that decision this week with the help of the Ward Foundation notifying me that they would like me to judge this year. I might not have anything to compete with this year, but I will at least get back there and start getting my juices flowing again. I will look forward to seeing everyone again and catching up on the finer parts of life.

As I progress I will be posting more. Thanks for your patients and understanding during this past year and some odd months.

Jerry...