| Notes |
- I had asked my littlest sister, Eva Marie, to stay with me that hotsummer
day on Aug 9th 1983. I told her we could go to the park and have lotsof fun
together. It was one of my only days off during that hot summer, andsince
Eva didn't want to go try her day with me, I decided to make otherplans
alone. If only I had tried harder to have her go with me.
Eva was sitting in the truck with Mom when I asked her. Where elsewould a
two year old rather be than with her Mom and Dad. They were going tospend
the day at a family farm doing some fixer-up-jobs ~ miles from town ~way out
in the country.
I can remember the heat that day, so hot it was difficult to breathe.
While Eva's Dad, Dale, was doing his Mr. Fit-it chores, Mom lay out inthe
sun with Eva close by her side.
Eva decided sunbathing wasn't quite the way she wanted to pass her
time....not entertaining enough. She found the old well pump moredelightful
as she swung around it and sang nursery rhymes.
Mom was relaxing in the sun, probably wondering how long they'd haveto be
out there in the Dog Days of August, when she heard the sound ofboards
cracking. No sooner than she could turn towards Eva, Eva wasgone...falling
down the 35 ft well. Mom screamed and Dale came running.
The well had dried up from years of use, but some rain had filled ashallow
hole at the bottom. Eva was crying for her Mom and Dad to help her. Ican
imagine the words and echoes still haunt them.
Dale found a ladder and Mom tried to comfort Eva with sweetencouraging words
of rescue and love. The ladder was too short to reach the bottom orEva's
grip. They pulled the ladder back up, tied a rope to one end, and then
lowered it again. Eva grabbed a hold of the ladder and Dale was ableto pull
her up. She was within an arms length when the ladder banged the treelimbs
overhead. The ladder was lost from Dale's grip. Eva and the ladderfell back
to the bottom of the well.
The ladder landed on Eva, causing her to be unconscious. They ruledher death
due to suffocation from the water.
Mom had ran to the closest neighbors to call for help. An ambulancearrived ,
but too late. Could they have revived her? Maybe...we'll never know.They
didn't or couldn't get her out quick enough. Besides, the ambulancewasn't
fully equipped for emergencies. They (response team) had earliertransferred
limited supplies from one ambulance to another for inspection.
A few months later, it was heard on the National News that BabyJessica had
fallen down a well. She lived. We were so happy for her and herfamily.
Eva's birthday will be the 12th of this month. I miss her dearly.
CAC ~ 9 Sept 2001
|
1980 - 1983 (2 years)