On Sunday, September 7, 2014, I received an email directed to the “contact” email address for Legal Insurrection.
Prof. Jacobson,I hope this email is directed to you and not Mandy. I am Mandy’s mother. Mandy is in the hospital. She had a stroke early Saturday morning. She is unable to speak and cannot move the right side of her body. If you would like to contact me, I can be reached at: xxxxxxxxxxxx. I am also going to go to her home and look on her computer to see if I can find your contact information.
It made sense that Mandy’s mom thought our general “contact” email might go to Mandy, not me. Mandy had been writing for us since March 2013, had taken an increasing administrative role, and was to start the next day full time to run the place.
My first post, which was updated repeatedly, followed her medical condition, Pray for Mandy Nagy:
We’re praying for Mandy, and keeping her seat at Legal Insurrection warm awaiting her return, however long it takes.
But it wasn’t to be. Mandy never returned to Legal Insurrection, and has struggled to gain some quality of life. Her parents, who I met at the hospital not long after the stroke, have been heroic.
Each year I update readers on Mandy’s progress, through emails from her mom:
I have another update from her mom:
Hi Bill,I hope you and your family are well. Thank you again for thinking of Mandy.Not much has changed. She was hospitalized once a few months ago. We thought she had another stroke but it was a seizure. She still has an aide assisting her each day and I fill in on Sundays, holidays and days when the aide is not available.Her only improvement occurred about six months ago when she became interested in the music playing on my IPhone. It always puzzled her family that she lost interest in music after the stroke, since music was such an important part of her life. Anyway, I downloaded music she likes on her IPad. She can’t read who the artist is, but she can identify the photo of the artist. So, now she listens to music often. Her doctors had said that music is good for recovery. It took four years, but better late than never.I’ll let Mandy know you asked about her.Regards,Ginny
I can’t say it better than Mandy once said it:
September 11th taught me the importance of family and loved ones in our lives, as well as the compassion of those we may not know, and that we can never, ever take life for granted.
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