Family Life and Friendship Network

Since Julie's passing, I have met a lot of people. I intended to make a few new friends and expected not to be very close to anyone for quite a long time. I thought it would be nice to meet women who enjoy singing and playing music, but above all I sought someone spiritual. I started dating earlier than I thought I would, but after a short time took a break from it for a few months. Right around the time I felt the spirit urging me to date again, there was a conference for LDS widows and widowers and something better than I expected happened - a serendipity.

Friends and Family,

I'm writing my 2009 newsletter late this year because I wanted to include the holidays at the end of the year. As all of you know, 2009 was a year filled with the highest highs and the lowest lows of my life. There isn't a whole lot new that I can say beyond what's already on my blog. This newsletter and blog post will bring together those posts, and add a little more.

I am grateful that so many people are looking out for me still. I've had a growing number of people asking me how I'm doing lately and thought maybe I'll take a moment and say how I am doing. I'm doing ok, I think, considering all things, but I'm also hurting more than I thought I would. I endured watching Julie's health fail, and got by alright because I was serving her and, honestly, because she was still there. Now she's physically gone and I don't have her to put all my focus on.

Most people seem to agree with my perspective that I should not just take any job for the sake of having at least something. There are a few who don't understand why. This blog is to help anyone who wonders about this understand why.

An audio recording of Julie's funeral.

This obituary is in the Salt Lake Tribune, Deseret News, and The Daily Herald:

My dear wife Julie passed away Sunday, July 19th at 13:00. I stayed home from church to care for Julie, and my mom stayed home with me. I was preparing to move Julie to the hospital bed so she would be ready for guests through the day, and stopped to send an email. She passed away in the few minutes I was not sitting at her side. When I returned to her, she was gone. She went without a sound. Her long awaited freedom has come. She stands free from the shackles of the cancer that so changed her life over 2 years ago.

As expected, Julie's health continues to decline. She has stopped talking most of the time now. I took her for a ride the other day and it was very odd how quite things were with her sitting beside me since she usually talks so much I miss turns and have to double back. She is eating less. I have to support most of her weight now whenever I move her to or from her wheelchair. A couple months ago, I could usually figure out what she wanted to say. Now, when she does speak, I often can't figure out what she wants to say, and when I do, it often takes much longer.

This was an article about our family featured in both the Magna Times and the West Valley City News:

Cyprus High classmates rally with others to lend a hand to Julie Johnson Stout and her family

Classmates and others pitch in to give Julie the beautiful yard she always wanted.

By Troy Miller
Staff Writer

(West Valley City, Ut.)—Former Cyprus High students showed their school spirit on May 1, 2009, when they helped a former classmate who is dying of a brain tumor.

My parents, my children, Julie and I, and other friends and family were on KSL today to show the world that at times of trial and need, friends and family can still make amaz

After Julie's biopsy a year and a half ago, we learned that Julie has an Anaplastic Astrocytoma. I've learned recently that her astrocytoma has a gliomatosis cerebri growth pattern. They might have known about that from the start, but it's new to me. Either one of these have a grim prognosis, and Julie has both. Some of you who have not had a chance to talk to her wonder what I mean when I try to explain how it is difficult for her to communicate. People who suffer from strokes that damage the left side of the brain often develop aphasia.

We finally were able to meet with a doctor about Julie's last MRI brain scan, which was done just over a month ago. It was delayed because Julie's former doctor did not receive the scans over the network the day we had our appointment (the same day as the scan). He did call us after about a week, and I've already blogged about the phone call. We got an appointment with Julie's former doctor a week after the call (2 weeks after the scan), but he was not there. He took a leave of absence for personal reasons that very day, with no indication if or when he would return.

I started out 2008 working for Linux Networx, a company I had only started working for 3 months before the year began. The investors, those who owned the company, had a strange sense of humor since they decided to give the whole company a very unique Valentine's day present. I came in to work that day, and went home a short time later with the information from HR on how to continue benefits since the company no longer existed. I quickly found another job with Treeline Group, starting the beginning of March. Treeline Group's the smallest company I've worked for yet.

An article in Reporter-Times, a newspaper for Martinsville and Morgan County in Indiana, reported the capture of a bank robber. My cousin Joe Stout helped them catch the bank robber. Since newspaper articles don't stay on the web, I'm putting the contents on my web site. I've already sited the original reference, and I'll provide a link to the original article for as long as the article remains online.

I got to met with Julie's doctor last week to discuss pending changes in Julie's treatment plan. She is finally done with her Temodar treatment, but the battle isn't over yet. Julie still has some cancer cells that resist Temodar. The new cancer cells are all developing very close to the top of her spinal column, but still in her brain. The new spots are very small, and Doctor Glantz is confident we can successfully treat them. The new treatment plan will begin in a couple weeks, with two different forms of chemotherapy.

Jaron is moving to Arizona for his education in drug dealing. This may be the last chance we have to see him for a long time. In addition, I'm moving. Julie and I finally have a house. My parents sold their house, and they will live with us. Please come to a combined Open House/Farewell celebration May 31 from 14:00 to whenever. If this time doesn't work for some of you, let me know, we can probably change the time.