My Da
d was born on August 3, 1925.
He died March 29, 2006.
I was fortunate to be able to come south to Atlanta in the springtime so that I could spend some time with Mom and Dad, who live in Anderson, South Carolina.
Dad had been in decline for several years. The end, when it came, was a release for him from the prison of hospitalization. It was a release for Mom, too, who took care of Dad in his final illnesses.
I started working on the redesign of my website during Dad's last month of suffering. I enjoyed working on the computer more than doing crossword puzzles or reading murder mysteries. I guess the plain look of these pages may be, in part, due to the somber mood that I have been in all spring.
This photo was taken a year ago on the day that Dad was first able to come home to the lake house after spending 10 weeks in the hospital and a nursing home. It was a lovely visit, but we had to take him back to the nursing home. He did get strong enough to spend most of the next year at home.
Two days before he died, after a couple of days of sleeping deeply, Dad talked with us, on and off. One of the great moments was when he suddenly said, "The party's over! Good-bye--God bless! Good-bye--God bless!"
It was a great party, Dad. Good-bye--God bless!
Dad's Obituary--by Laura and the family
Dr. Desmond D. Moleski passed away March 29th surrounded by his family at the Hospice of the Upstate in Anderson, S.C.
Born in 1925 in Timmins, Ontario, Dr. Moleski worked in the Ontario gold mines as a boy and later went on to study medicine at the University of Toronto, where he met and married his loving wife Ruth in 1949. They emigrated to the U.S. and Dr. Moleski served as a flight surgeon in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. He returned to his family practice in Ellicottville, N.Y., and then settled in Orchard Park, N.Y. to raise his ten children and specialize in psychiatry.
A lifetime devotee of classical music, he played in the Orchard Park Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Joseph Wincenc. In his spare time, he worked meticulously to repair, restore and eventually build violins, violas and cellos, when he wasn’t devouring the latest murder mystery or historic novel.
Dr. Moleski continued to serve his country as a Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves. In addition to his busy private practice, he served the city of Buffalo by conducting evaluations for the city’s school system, carefully writing the story of each student he encountered so that teachers and counselors could best understand and help these students. He also served for one year as Acting Director of Buffalo State Hospital. He served his Church by conducting countless evaluations of seminary candidates and acting as a support for both clergymen and members of religious orders. Dr. Moleski believed that psychiatry was the art of using medicine to help people be fully functional in their daily lives, out in society, free from the anxieties or depressions that may limit them, and he practiced his art with grace and dedication.
Dr. Moleski moved to Anderson, S.C., in 1992 to work at the Patrick B. Harris Psychiatric Hospital and retired here. He enjoyed playing in the Anderson Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Perry Carroll. In addition to Ruth, he is survived by his children, eighteen grandchildren and three great-grandsons. Husband of 56 years, father of ten children, dedicated psychiatrist, proud officer, luthier, witty neighbor, devoted friend. These are the words that we use to try and take the measure of a man. But they cannot adequately capture his spirit, which lives on in Marion Hanson of Defiance, OH, Martin Moleski, S.J., of Buffalo, N.Y., Teresa Ichniowski of Silver Spring, MD, Claudia Moleski of Hamburg, N.Y., Marne O’Shae, M.D., of Ithaca, N.Y., Cat Moleski of Chapel Hill, N.C., Dominic Moleski of Sacramento, CA, Laura Moleski Franc of Sparta, N.J., Hilda Moleski of Ithaca, N.Y. and Desmond C.J. Moleski of Portland, OR, and their children and grand-children.
In lieu of flowers the family asks that donations be made to the Hospice of the Upstate in Anderson, S.C.
Dad's .css layout
I designed the original .css for these pages in the last few days of Dad's life. I think he was already in the hospice when I was making my first experiments with the navigation div; I think Dez was in town while I was working on it. I've brightened up the layout a bit in 2010, but I plan to leave the structure basically intact for this section of my website. Rest in peace, Dad!