Donald R Prickett

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Don Prickett, who passed away peacefully on July 5, 2014, at St. Paul’s Hospital ICU in Saskatoon. Don was born near Cando Sask. on August 1, 1937, to May and Ferrel Prickett. He spent his early years in North Battleford, attending Connaught School. In 1942, Don’s father enlisted in the army and he went overseas for the duration of the war. In February 1945, Don's mother moved the family to Saskatoon where Don attended Haultain and Westmount schools. There were many adventures for this young lad now living in the big city, one of which was spending time at Ave. H. swimming pool (now called Riversdale pool). Don would beg his mother for ten cents - five cents for admission to the pool and another five cents for a soft ice cream cone at Ford’s drug store. A difficult decision was whether to have the ice cream on the way to the pool or to save the five cents and have the ice cream on the long walk home. More often than not, he would arrive at the pool with Artic Honey soft ice cream dripping from his chin! When Don was entering grade seven the family once again pulled up stakes and moved to Leroy, Sask. Being an exceptionally bright boy, Don skipped grade eight and moved directly into grade nine. In May 1952, the family moved back to Saskatoon. Don attended Nutana collegiate and life was pretty much uneventful until December 3rd, 1953, when he was admitted to City Hospital with the disease of polio. His condition deteriorated rapidly and he was placed in an iron lung ventilator, which was to become his home for the next few months. Don eventually started to improve and was able to breathe on his own for a few minutes, and then gradually worked his way up to one-hour periods. Around March 1954, it was decided that he should be transferred to St. Paul’s Hospital's post-polio unit. This would be his new residence until November 5 of that year, when he was able to return home. Don was now in the care of his family who were a little nervous at first - as was he - but things soon improved with the arrival of his tiny niece, Orena May – the daughter of Don’s sister Gladys. Orena and Don had a very special relationship that continued until his passing. In January 1955, he began daily visits to the rehabilitation unit at the Saskatoon airport. Rehab was a shadow of what it is today but progress was made. Don finished his grade eleven and enrolled in grade twelve the following fall. In 1956, he enrolled in the college of Law at the University of Saskatchewan, but this proved to be too taxing for him. After numerous sick days, his Doctor advised him to call it quits. Don was a brilliant man and his thirst for knowledge continued throughout his life. Once computers came on the scene he enrolled in various university classes online. He was very interested in computers, as well as ham radio. Don accepted an office job with W.C. Wells Construction in September 1959, and remained there until December 1961. Due to a slowdown in the construction industry he was laid off, but good fortune shone upon Don in the form of a job with the Upper Atmospheric Physics research group at the U. of S. Health-wise, things remained stable for him until January 1976, when he was admitted to St. Paul’s hospital special care unit with pneumonia. His condition worsened and he was placed on a ventilator. This would be the beginning of Don’s long relationship with St. Paul’s ICU. Between January 1976 & September 1977, there were ten admissions to St. Paul’s hospital for a total of 226 days, almost half of them in ICU. It was decided in April 1976 to make Don's tracheotomy permanent, because his breathing was adequate during the day but dropped considerably while sleeping. He also began sleeping on a rocking bed - these were occasionally used for polio-damaged lungs in those days. While his breathing problems were now under control, he began to lose ground physically, particularly in his legs, so he decided to retire in the fall of 1976. Due to increased difficulty with stairs, in 1978 he purchased a beautiful slab home on McAskill Cres. Life settled into a period of quiet for Don with just a few admissions to hospital during 1986 and 1987. There were more admissions for him in the 1990's due to intestinal issues and in January 1997 he received an ileostomy. Don said he was probably the only person in the city happy to get a plastic gut for Christmas! In December 1997, Don's regular home health aide arrived with a new hire in tow. Her name was Janey. She became a regular on Fridays. Don always said that of all the home health aides that had cared for him over the years, this one was different. A romance like no other began and Don and Janey were married on June 21, 2000. Don once again began experiencing respiratory issues in January 2004, so it was decided he would need a ventilator for sleeping. Janey became his primary caregiver and life returned to what was to be the norm for a period of over eight years. Then, due to Don's post-polio syndrome, he had four admissions to hospital between November 2012 and July 2013. He continued this rapid downhill spiral with his last admission in June 2, 2014, and his death on July 5. His family would like to thank all the caregivers and nurses that helped look after Don over the years: most recently Amanda, Julie, Marilyn, and Julie Anne (he can see you now), as well as the staff from the DCF program: Julie Cortens, Natalie Valad, Jessica Fox and her husband D’arcy - this program allowed Don to remain at home for as long as possible. Thanks also to Walkers Pharmacy, MediChair, Golden Mobility, and MD Ambulance for all the transfers to and from the hospital – you were all so helpful and kind. A special thank you to Dr. Ken Stakiw for 29 years of care and friendship, and more recently Dr. Kurt Roelens, Trevor Ambruster (Don's respiratory Therapist), Provincial Home Oxygen, and all the staff from Sail, as well as Norma Closson, for helping out in a pinch, Brian and Glenda Wagner, Nurse Next Door, Karla and Neil Kerr, Tim Wake, Deltra Wilkinson, Kate and Michael Thorenson, and Janice and Merv Schmitz. Last, thank you to Dr. Mark James and his incredible Critical Care staff at St. Paul’s ICU. Words cannot express our appreciation for your kindness and compassionate care. God bless all of you. Don was predeceased by his parents Ferrell and May Prickett, sister Gladys, brother Gordon, sisters-in-law Helen and Penny, and brother-in-law Dennis. He is survived by his wife Janey, stepchildren Lindsay (Jen, Keegan and Kylee) Brooke (Hunter), and Landon (Miranda), his sister Ada, brother Mel, nephews Brent and namesake Don, and nieces Debbie, Jaime, Erna (Bill), Sandy (Norm), and Orena (Lloyd, Clay). Respecting Don’s wishes, there will be no service or memorial service and floral tributes are gratefully declined. Donations may be made in Don’s memory to St. Paul’s Hospital ICU. Don was an exceptional human being. He never complained about his health issues and accepted all that was dealt him with dignity. He was a brilliant man with such a keen sense of humor – his one-liners were legendary - and he was always kind and gentle. As one of his ICU nurses said: "Don was not only a gentleman, but a ‘gentle man’.” His ‘girls’ can attest to that – Don’s pet dogs Sadie and Izzy are going to miss him terribly. Today would be his 77th birthday – there is sure to be a grand celebration going on in heaven. We love and miss you Don. Your memory will remain in our hearts forever.