ODE TO NICOLE

I never knew how to take her tag line of Not Quite Dead Yet as in old age had not caught up to her yet , or more sinister as in fighting cancer, dementia, ALS or something equally horrid.  Guess it was one of the latter .

MAY GOD BLESS NICOLE'S SOUL AND HER LOVED ONES
Ralph

We are all going to make our last posting someday.  Any of us would be lucky to be remembered as fondly on these Forums as Nicole is.

A fine tribute to a beautiful person, well deserving of these nice words.  God Bless you Nicole.

 

Steve, Lady and Tex

Wishing her the best wherever she is.

I'm very sorry to hear about this. I've already lost too many friends and relatives to cancer and other serious ailments.

 

A fitting tribute, thanks for sharing.

God's speed dear Lady.....

nice thread..........Popi you really got me with the flag at half mast........

man (lady) down!

 

 

Truly so. Good to find such sentiments still abound.

She's with past forum members now, Gil Finn, Lisa Marie T., Paulie and Les Line. I am sure I forgot one or two. May God Bless.

 

Bill

Well done Bob. She is missed by all of us. 

She has become one with the ages,

Fare thee well Nicole.

 

Jerry

While we knew this day would come, it still shocks.

 

Sincere condolences to her family

A very nice tribute to super nice person, thanks Bob!

Nicole will always be sadly missed.

 

Doug

Beautifully done Bob.  A wonderful tribute.

 

Thanks.

Not quite dead yet is part of a line from Monty Python's Search For the HolyGrail. She may hav adapted it in regard to her battle with cancer. My bother died last Sunday from lung cancer, and fortunately, he didn't suffer much. If Nicole passed, I hope it was peaceful and painless. Nicely versed tribute Bob.

Don

R.I.P. Nicole.

Peace wherever you are.

It's hard to say goodbye, she will be missed.  Bob, thanks for starting this post.

Thanks Bob! Nicole: Rest Peacefully.

I think it's awesome how everyone has come together to celebrate a woman they knew, personally or through this forum, in a most positive and spiritual way. I'm quite sure if she's in the train station in the sky, she wishes she could post!

 

This thread speaks to the goodness of our hobby, the people in it, and the impact it has on this oh too short human existence.

 

Miss you, Nicole!

Very nice verse, Bob.

 

Has it been confirmed that Nicole has passed away, or is it just assumed?

Brian,

Thank you for mentioning this.  I was about to post the same question.  I don't believe that a definite notice has been posted although things do look bleak.

 

Paul Edgar

Thank you Bob,

 

Those well-chosen and eloquent words truly express how many of us feel.

 

Jim

Did I miss a posting?  Has it been verified that she passed away...I just remember posts wondering...why she had not posted?

It has not been confirmed, but considering what is known of her medical history (cancer)  and some comments made about her medical state in the Fall , its a pretty safe assumption that she has passed. Several of us reached out to her beyond the forum with no success

 

Only other possibility is that she wants nothing to do with any of us, but judging by how friendly she was with everyone that seems unlikely.

A unique and sweet LADY!

Beautiful post's.

Never knew Nicole or her postings but by the out-pouring of love shown by all of you I feel I missed someone truly special.

Would love to have the opportunity to read some of her more memorable postings.

JohnJr

It is beautiful how many of us were touched with Nicoles charm, wit & humor. There is a void in the forum that I miss every day.

 

Paul

Thank You Bob. Miss you Nicole R.I.P.

I never knew her personally but she always was such a kind soul and always willing to help...god bless you.  You'll be missed dearly.

She was definitely one of the most likeable and liked O Gaugers on the forum. R.I.P. Nicole.

I admired her ability to enjoy the life she had, even knowing it might not be long. She posted for a long while without saying a word about her own trouble. Even now, I keep hoping she had a computer glitch. 

I emailed Nicole back in July letting her know how much we missed her on the OGR Forum and letting her know that she was in my prayers. I have copied and pasted her reply. I don't think she would mind my sharing it with you all. Please note the date; it is not a recent response. It is, however a glimpse of what a brave lady she was and how she was facing this fight with cancer.

 

From Nichole.... 

 

Saturday, Jul 12 07:33 AM

 

Thank you all for your messages over the past few days.

I wish to say that I really do appreciate your thoughts, and your kindness.

I’m sorry that it’s taken me so long to reply, but my last week has mainly been spent at the hospital, and then I have been resting after I returned home. Next week will be the same, but after that I hope to be spending less time at the hospital.

For those of you who don’t know, I was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer back in early 2008, and underwent surgery and chemotherapy at that time. I had hoped that I had beaten the odds, and the cancer was eradicated. But in July of 2012 it returned. The cancer had metastasised and spread to my lymph nodes and into my lungs. In October 2012 I was told that it was terminal and that I had only a few months to live.

As you can imagine, I didn’t like that idea, and I started looking for a hospital that would try to help me to beat the cancer again. I was then treated at Nijmegen hospital from December 2012, and received some pretty heavy chemotherapy until January this year, when they too gave up. The chemo was not working, and was doing a much better job of killing me than it was at treating the cancer. By then I was a mere shadow of my former self, and looked like a very skinny version of Gollum. The chemo had also damaged my nerves quite badly, and I could no longer walk. 

So, they stopped the treatment then, and left nature to take its course. In the last 6 months I have regained the ability to walk a bit, and can hobble around with stick for short distances now. I’m also getting my hair back, and have managed to regain about 30 lbs in weight.

I refused to give up, and carried on searching for a treatment. A few weeks ago I learned of a phase-1 trial for a new treatment that was being conducted at Utrecht University Medical Centre, and I applied to become a test subject. I have been accepted for this trial and began the process last week.

Hopefully this new drug will work for me, and I’ll be around for a while longer. I have told the doctors that I’m allergic to death, and that I have a railway to build.

Anyway, please be assured that I’ll be back in the forum as soon as I can, and that my sense of humour is still alive and well. Please excuse any delayed responses from me though.

Thanks again for your thoughts and wishes. It means a lot to me.

Nicole.

Gilly thanks for posting this. the really is a tribute to someone who was facing death yet had the ability to still have a sense of humor. her wonderful posts and comments always brought a smile to me and i'm sure to most of those who read what she had to say. we are all better people from knowing her and if she did anything this post can be an inspiration to any of us facing life's problems. GOD BLESS YOU NICOLE AND THANK YOU FOR BEING SUCH A SPECIAL PERSON.

This is very similar to what my brother went through, ultimately leading to his passing two weeks ago. He kept his sense of humor to the end. The week after I saw him, my niece gave him a hair cut and shaved his beard off. My sister took a picture on her phone and showed me, he looks like me without the beard. We had planned to see him on the Sunday he died. I wanted to get one last picture of the two of us, but sadly, it wasn't meant to be. 

At his funeral last Friday,  two of my sisters, my wife, my son Geoff, Bills daughter and grand daughter and I sang as a family choir at his funeral. 

I continue to pray for Nicole, not knowing for sure if she's with us or the Lord. My brother was just starting to get back into trains when he had a major stroke about four years ago. He was going to join the TCA, as he had gone to York and Allentown with me, and really enjoyed being reintroduced to the hobby. Maybe he and Nicole are looking down on us from Heaven. 

Don

As a dialysis patient, I am reminded daily that my thrice-weekly treatments stand between me and oblivion!

 

I often quote Nicole's N.Q.D.Y ("not quite dead yet"), and it elicits laughs from family members and friends!   

 

It's just so sad. I don't know what else I can say that hasn't already been said except that Nicole will be highly missed and not forgotten. 

 

Don, I am very sorry to hear of your loss. My sincerest condolences.

Gilly,

 

Thank you for posting that. I am sure she would have wanted you to post it. Good to read one last message from Nichole.