Our family was rocked with horrible news!

Today had started like any other day. Jamie went to work. The kids were off to school. Laundry and dishes were done. The children came home from school, got snacks and started homework. Then I received the phone call that changed us all.

Jamie's Aunt Sis called me from Shady Grove Hospital very upset to tell me that Richard was there and in very serious condition. She asked me to please get ahold of Jamie and Becky as soon as possible. I made those phone calls and no sooner had I hund up and Sis called again. Richard, my father-in-law, my children's grandfather, was gone.

Richard was coming home from work. About half way home, he suffered a massive heart attack. Thankfully he didn't hit anyone else when his Blazer swerved across the road. Doctors tell us that he was gone quickly and didn't suffer to which we do find some comfort.

The next few days were filled with planning his arrangements through lots of tears.

There were tons of people ~ family, friends (even friends from Virginia and West Virginia) and many co-workers ~ at his viewings and funerals. Richard impacted a lot of people's lives. We miss him so much.

His work put a really nice memorial on the side of his truck which they will not be taking down. Richard's nephew, Chris, drives the truck now and even took Richard's job. We all know Richard is very proud of Chris.



The City of Rockville did an amazing press release on him as well.

Press Release

News Release
CONTACT:
Tony Ruffin, Communication Officer, 240-314-8115
Kimberly O'Sullivan, Public Information Specialist, 240-314-8116



Long-Time Public Works Supervisor’s Death Leaves Tremendous Void, Sadness
Richard Combs Best Knew City Water Distribution System; Key Person in Reliable Water Service for Residents, Others

ROCKVILLE, Md., June 4, 2007 —Richard Combs was one of the many City of Rockville employees who most residents don't meet or read about. But every time residents turned on their faucets, they had Richard to thank as one of the key people who made sure that the water came out and that it was clean and of the highest quality. And every time the fire department needed a City fire hydrant, it could thank Richard for making sure it operated and that water came out at the pressure that was needed. Richard Combs passed away on Thursday, May 31, when he suffered a heart attack on his way home from work. Richard had served the City and its residents for 34 years, the past 23 as a utilities crew supervisor. He was 59 years old and had been planning on retiring soon.

“Richard knew the City’s water distribution system better than anyone,” said Craig Simoneau, Director of Public Works. “Whenever anyone had a question or problem with any part of the system, Richard was the first person they turned to, and invariably, he had the answer or knew where to find it. That kind of knowledge cannot be replaced, except over time—a long time.”

However, not all of Richard’s knowledge is lost. Those who worked with him said he was a tremendous teacher, and part of his legacy is a well-trained staff that is prepared and able to carry on providing a high level of technically proficient service.

Steve Sokol, the City’s Operations Maintenance Superintendent, said, “Richard will be truly missed not only for the valuable service he supplied the City, but also for the wonderful man that he was. Richard was a well-respected person and liked by all who knew him,” said Sokol. “He was the epitome of the dedicated and hard working public servants who work behind the scenes on a daily basis to make sure Rockville residents and businesses have the important services they need. Even when he was not on duty, he was available to answer questions from other utilities employees and to come in when needed.”

Richard Combs began his employment with the City as a utilities maintenance worker in 1973. He became a utilities crew supervisor in 1984. His work involved maintenance and repair of all parts of the City’s water distribution system, among them water tanks, water mains, fire hydrants, and pressure reducing valves. He also worked with City inspectors on water system hookups to new construction. For more than 20 years, he was a vital part of the City’s biennial water main flushing program, which cleans sediment out of the system and ensures the proper operation of the City’s fire hydrants. He also was the primary person to respond to residents when they had problems with their water service.

It's been too long and so much has gone on!

I really need to get better about doing this. So many things have happened in the last month and I'm sure I've forgotten a lot.

Jacob was sick, really sick, for a few days. He woke up on a Thursday morning, breathing hard, couldn't stay awake, with a really low body temperature (94.9!). With an appointment set for 4:15 pm, I started doing my normal morning things. Jasmine was home that day since it was Kindergarten registration at school and she was off. She helped so much watching him and talking to him when he did wake up. She told me something was wrong, that he was sweating way more than normal. I went and checked him and something was wrong. I called my mom, then Jamie, and both said to take him straight to the doctor or the hospital. I called the doctor back and finally spoke to the nurse that knows me and the kids really well. She said if I thought something was wrong, then I needed to come right up. They took him right back and she got the doctor right away. Upon questions and an examination, she said he needed to go straight to the ER. We ran home really quick and called Jamie, who left work right then. We got to the hospital and they triaged him right away. Jasmine was awesome the whole time with Jacob, holding his hand, since I was holding Jenna, who was a little freaked out with everything going on. The triage nurse said he would be going back in less than 5 minutes. 5 minutes? The ER? Yeah, ok. Well about 2 minutes later, Jacob was called back. He took us back to the Pediatric ER, pushing the stroller for me, since Jenna would NOT let me put her down. He said we needed to get Jacob in the oh so fashionable hospital gown and the nurse would be right in. The nurse came and hooked up the vitals, like temperature, blood pressure, heartbeat, etc. They started him on oxygen because you could just see his little body working so hard to breathe. About this time, Jamie got there. I took the girls home since the other kids were getting out of school and Jamie wanted to stay with Jacob. That was the hardest thing ~ leaving my baby at the hospital. My head knew he was safe with Daddy but my heart ached to stay with him. Jasmine burst into tears once we stepped outside the hospital. She was so strong and brave in front of Jacob that I didn't even realize it was bothering her. Jasmine and I prayed on the way home. While we were at home, they ran lots of tests and ruled out things like menigitis, pneumonia and asthma. Jamie said it was heartbreaking when they put tubes in his nose. They had him on Albuterol and steroid breathing treatments constantly. After a few hours, they decided to admit him to the PICU (Pediatric Intensive Care Unit). Once the other kids got home from school and did their homework, we went up to the hospital so that I could stay with Jacob. Jamie took all the other kids home. Jacob was sleeping when I got there. I just sat there with him. They finally took him from the Pediatric ER up to PICU. Thursday night was rough. I didn't sleep that much, worrying about him plus he needed help with the urinal to go potty. The constant IVs had him very hydrated by this point. And he kept rolling over and getting cords tangled up and uphooking his pulse monitor among other things. During the day, he did a great job keeping all the monitors, tubes and breathing mask on. Friday morning, he was doing better but still needed the constant breathing treatments. If he was off of it, his oxygen levels dropped a little bit. By the afternoon though, they took the mask off and they didn't drop. They said if they didn't drop for two hours, then he could do Albuterol treatments every two hours. That is exactly what happened. By Friday night, he was a completely different kid but they wanted to keep him one more night since he was in such rough shape just the night before. By Saturday morning, he was so ready to go home. He ate up everything they brought him for breakfast. He played in the toy room they had. He was back to his old self. They said we could do the treatments every four hours. The doctor said that he just had a virus that turned into an upper respiratory infection. We came home Saturday afternoon with instructions to do treatments every four hours for Saturday and Sunday. Then only as needed. He hasn't needed them and has been fine since. It was amazingly scary to see him like that in the hospital. The kids, the neighbors and obviously family were all so worried about him. We had so many people praying for him which means so much. It's amazing how quickly kids can bounce back!

Jasmine turned the big 6 on May 8th! Six years old. When did that happen? Where has the time gone? She is such a wonderful daughter. Jamie and I are so lucky to be her parents. She spent the weekend before her birthday with Oma and Opa for her Birthday Weekend which pretty much consists of Oma and Opa doing and getting her whatever she wants. Oma took her shopping and got her some clothes and things. She got a Cabbage Patch Doll named Jasmine. Mommy and Daddy got her a Bratz scooter which she is a pro at riding now. She's only had one accident on it that she roughed up her knees and elbows pretty bad but a few hours later and she was back on that scooter!

Jenna is talking up a storm and thinks she is so grown up. She's really showing her attitude, which some like to say is just like me. I just don't see it. ;-)

James and Jordan are both doing well in school. They are ready for summer though. Bike riding and skateboarding are on top of their lists.

I will definitely get better about updating this. I hope to do some gardening soon and more pictures of the kids. I have really slacked off on my picture taking!