"Mom's coming home!" Jessica Niesen. Learn how your comment data is processed. By Judith Graham Long. ((seethe)). Edith was gaining weight, getting physical therapy, taking all her medications and was well-adjusted, according to her court report. Niesen now has the task of . In a court deposition, Cher said she was inspired last year when she a saw news story about Edith Hill and her newlywed husband, Eddie Harrison. In December, a court-appointed guardian for Hill, Jessica Niesen, had Hill moved to Florida to live with another daughter. Wright had allegedly emptied her mothers bank account of $11,000 and was refusing to return the funds, according to that court filing. Could her distress have been alleviated if she had received reassurance rather than being torn between conflicting factions? Meanwhile, Niesen said she was getting calls from family members who worried that Edith was rapidly losing weight and not receiving necessary medical attention. So Edith moved to Florida to live with Barber in mid-March. but the family of 96-year-old Edith Hill doesn't think so. Edith passed away last March of natural causes at age 98, after living with her daughter in Florida through the end of her life. The court placed her as the guardian of a woman she never met in person, never knew on a personal level, only knew her paperwork. The interracial aspect of the marriage also was unique because the two longtime Virginians would not have been allowed to marry if they had met in their 20s, 30s or 40s under state law at the time. Niesen, in a phone interview, said she is still gathering facts and has an upcoming appointment to meet Hill and Harrison. Sometimes Jessica goes by various nicknames including Jessica J Niesen. And Jessica Niesen facilitated that. Ms. Jessica, you are one of the most disgusting people Ive ever heard of in my life. Rebecca was moving her around all over the place and wouldnt return my phone calls. Ediths transfer was scheduled for Dec. 6 but Wright failed to deliver her mother to a location agreed upon in advance, according to Niesen. March 1, 2018. At that point, emails show Niesen let Wrights lawyer know she wanted Edith to go to Florida for several weeks while she looked for an assisted living facility or an alternative living situation. It begins in the fall of 2014 with Edith Hill, 96, and Eddie Harrison, 95, who were married only a few months before, enjoying a series of intimate moments dancing together, holding hands, exercising and chatting comfortably. There was a woman in my Fathers life who (in my opinion) took advantage of him. But their union is now being investigated because . At the start of each day, he . Director, producer and editor Laura Checkoway, an Ann Arbor native, began her career as a writer and journalist. The 2018 Oscar-Nominated Shorts: Documentary Program was the 141st ticket I bought using Movie Pass. A son, Lewis McDaniel, died in early 2012.). It was concerning, since Im the one who was legally responsible for her and I didnt know what was going on, Niesen said. Barber insists that wasnt true and that the couple spoke every day once she was in Florida sometimes multiple times a day. Her home wasnt sold until after her death; there was no attempt to plunder her estate by lawyers or family members. That is what you do if you truly love someone. But that, the judge ruled, was impossible unless the home was renovated since the only bathroom was up a steep flight of stairs a significant fall risk for the increasingly frail older woman. When I received the call that we needed to prepare ourselves, that we needed to make decisions about end of life care for Dad, I never thought once about making sure everyone was there in the room with the doctors to offer their input. Niesen wasnt sure where Edith and Eddie were living; when she asked Wright for that information, she was reportedly told they were moving between two Virginia houses on an unpredictable schedule. Edith passed away last March of natural causes at the age of 98, after living with her daughter in Florida through the end of her life. Newlyweds Edith Hill, 96, and Eddie Harrison, 95, married in Alexandria, Virginia, earlier this year after being companions for over a decade. Caldwells bottom line conclusion: I recommend Mrs. Hill move to an assisted living community.. This article was published more than5 years ago. She should at least resign. Was it Barber, the daughter in Florida, who believed Edith needed what she felt was a more reliable living situation? A court appointed Jessica Nielsen to look out for Edith's best interests and well being. The pair's unconventional marriage made national news last year following an Associated Press article on the couple not only were they 95 and 96 when they got married, but the interracial aspect of their marriage was noteworthy. In an interview with WUSA9, Harrison hugged Hill and said "we'll be like this always regardless of what happens.". To have someone at that stage of your life care for you and you return those feelings what an amazing gift. Court records indicate that Hill suffers from mild dementia. As a columnist who covers aging, Im familiar with such stories. Is it possible to have a significant other while taking care of your parents? I picked up Kelly McGonigal's TheUpside of Stress assuming I would skim it for a few interesting ideas, but probably not finish it. Part of HuffPost News. I started wondering about questions the film failed to address. We encourage organizations to republish our content, free of charge. Ediths transfer was scheduled for Dec. 6 but Wright failed to deliver her mother to a location agreed upon in advance, according to Niesen. Not just a bad attorney, an utterly insincere "person", lacking a moral compass and without compassion. We have a group specifically to connect you so we can bring about change. (Although Wright claimed a doctor had seen her mother and agreed to the medication changes, when Caldwell checked, she learned that wasnt true, according to the report.). Asked to investigate the circumstances under which Edith was wed, Bushman, the guardian ad litem, wrote in a court filing that he determined that Ms. Niesen, in a phone interview, said she is still gathering facts and has an upcoming appointment to meet Hill and Harrison. 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It begins in the fall of 2014 with Edith Hill, 96, and Eddie Harrison, 95, who were married only a few months before, enjoying a series of intimate moments dancing together, holding hands, exercising and chatting comfortably. Jessica Niesen, your actions in this case were cruel, racist, and amoral. As a columnist who covers aging, I'm familiar with such stories. (Yates isnt mentioned in the documentary. I suppose she was making a statement. . "She says she wants to see her guitar boys," Wright said, a reference to a Falls Church honkytonk where she would go dancing with Harrison. You remove your feelings from it all and do what is best for your loved one. Niesen now has the task of investigating the marriage and protecting Hill's interests. And we report on how the health care system hospitals, doctors, nurses, insurers, governments, consumers works. Could her distress have been alleviated, if she had received reassurance rather than being torn between conflicting factions? Edith moved from an Alexandria, Va., townhome that shed owned for decades, to Yates home in Baltimore. I think so. All the people and records I consulted made it clear that the sisters for years had bickered over what was best for their mother. The reason? Theyre trying to say it was some abuse or something, said Hubbard, Ediths brother. Attempts to ask Wright about this issue and other questions were unsuccessful. My sister was treated beautiful when she went down to Florida.. All the people and records I consulted made it clear that the sisters for years had bickered over what was best for their mother. And Jessica Niesen facilitated that. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. My sister was treated beautiful when she went down to Florida.. Thank you. I wrote, backspaced, wrote again. After that, it was hard keeping track of where my mother was, said Barber. Where race is an underlying issue in Edith+Eddie, it explodes provocatively in HBO 's Traffic Stop (Dir. In December 2013, court records show, a geriatric care manager determined that Edith required extensive, round-the-clock assistance with all routine activities. The film states that Edith and Eddie never spoke again. This film is distorted and hurtful, said Davis, one of Ediths granddaughters. Asked to investigate the circumstances under which Edith was wed, Bushman, the guardian ad litem, wrote in a court filing that he determined that Ms. I have never wanted to reach through a screen to strangle a person as much as I did Jessica Niesen. There are no grand solutions, but there are countless little ways to make our lives better. It brought to the surface all of my feelings, all of my many many feelings. We appreciate all forms of engagement from our readers and listeners, and welcome your support. Was it Niesen, who intervened to address what the court had already found to be an unsafe situation for Edith, even if it meant splitting up the couple for a while? Wright was not acting in the best interest of Ms. Hill at that point, because she was doing what she wanted to do and not working with her other co-guardian.. I do believe all three sisters loved their mother, but they each had their own idea of how to handle things, said Joshua Bushman, who became Ediths guardian ad litem in 2011 at the request of the City of Alexandria, Va. Please preserve the hyperlinks in the story. The fact that she did not give this man a proper funeral blows my mind. Bull crap! Was it Niesen, who intervened to address what the court had already found to be an unsafe situation for Edith, even if it meant splitting up the couple for a while? In January 2014, Yates, 77, gave up guardianship because it was getting to be a bit much and there was a lot of confusion going on, she said, allowing simmering family conflicts to re-emerge. If a woman is under guardianship she cannot alter her marital status become married without permission of the court, said Kelly Thompson, a Virginia attorney and immediate past chair of the special needs section of the Virginia Bar Assn. I seethe now because the one person in Dads family who was this womans friend never told me that detail. Did Edith fully understand what was happening at that point? Later that month, Harrison died. The couple fought them, with Harrison protesting to Niesen: Wright said he was heartbroken when Hill was moved to Florida and gloomy about his prospects of ever seeing her again. Her two sisters, Wright and Barber, then became their mothers co-guardians, court records show. There was no abuse involved none at all.. Edith moved from an Alexandria, Va. townhome that shed owned for decades, to Yates home in Baltimore. Harrison stayed in Virginia. But Hill and Harrison said they wanted to stay together. Dont miss reporting and analysis from the Hill and the White House. But as I immersed myself in the details of this case, I found myself reaching a familiar conclusion: real life is more complicated than in the movies. More bull crap! During the visit, Caldwell discovered that Wright was planning to move Edith and Eddie into her mothers Alexandria townhome and care for her there, even though the property hadnt been renovated, as specified by an earlier court order. Thank you for your interest in supporting Kaiser Health News (KHN), the nations leading nonprofit newsroom focused on health and health policy. Edith Hill, 96, and Eddie Harrison, 95, shown here in their home in Annandale, Va., were married earlier this year. Some family members and legal experts thought not, since Edith had been declared incapacitated. Her goal, she said in an interview, was to remove Edith from an unsafe environment, not to separate her from Eddie, whom shed invited to join Edith in Florida. Could her distress have been alleviated, if she had received reassurance rather than being torn between conflicting factions? I reached out to Ediths family members including several who werent included in the documentary. . But that didnt happen. He actually gave his life to this effort, Wright said of Harrison and his battle to have his union with Hill recognized and to live with his wife. Cher at the AFI Night at the Movies at the ArcLight in Los Angeles on April 24, 2013. It is my opinion (and having been told details from others) that she had more than one friend who bought dinners and paid for things. Exactly. Edith Hill, 96, and Eddie Harrison, 95, shown here in their home in Annandale, Va., were married earlier this year. Niesen and Barber then went to Ediths townhome and were met by a camera crew waiting to film the ensuing drama as Edith and Eddie lay next to each other in bed, overcome by helplessness and dread a heartbreaking scene shown in the film. Wright says Alexandria is the best place for her mother, and the place that her mother says she wants to spend the rest of her days - her church is here, along with her home and other places she loves. Hill and Harrison live in nearby Annandale, Va., with Wright and her daughter, Robin. A dispute continues between the two sisters, Barber and Wright, over Hills affairs and place of residence. Winter storm update: Large system now heading towards Que. When Hill did not return home as planned after two weeks, Harrison began to realize she was not coming back, Wright said. (Although Wright claimed a doctor had seen her mother and agreed to the medication changes, when Caldwell checked, she learned that wasnt true, according to the report.). This film is distorted and hurtful, said Michelle Davis, one of Ediths granddaughters. It was meant to be temporary, my grandmothers separation from Eddie, until they were able to place them somewhere together, said Lois Mosby, another granddaughter. This Kaiser Health News story can be republished for free (details). A Tale of Love, Family Conflict And Battles Over Care For An Aging Mother. Edith and Eddie, ages 96 and 95, are America's oldest interracial newlyweds. In an interview, Barber said she thought her mother would enjoy the trip and asked Wright to bring Edith back to Florida in July, in time for several doctors appointments. How do we cope with anger as a caregiver? In an interview, Niesen said she had no reason to contest Edith and Eddies marriage because it wasnt hurting anybody and it was making them happy.. It reminded me of the frustration I felt at trying to organize my Dads finances and blindly trying to do my best to include people I felt aided in my Dads demise. I had the room, I had the resources, my boss was kind enough to offer me the time. There are allegations from one of Ediths daughters about money issues and possession of the family home, as well as insinuations of racism (Edith is black, Eddie is white). Her home wasnt sold until after her death; there was no attempt to plunder her estate by lawyers or family members. After that, it was hard keeping track of where my mother was, said Barber. Their marriage was problematic because Hill has been declared legally incapacitated for several years. Posturing by lawyers and case filings inevitably dehumanize the elderly and we were not interested in exploring these predictable events.. By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. A judge appointed a new guardian for Hill to protect her interests, removing Barber and Wright as guardians, but left the marriage intact. Hill and Harrison met more than a decade ago while waiting in line to buy lottery tickets. Eddie Harrison died Tuesday in a hospital after suffering from influenza, said Rebecca Wright, who was caring for the couple in their Alexandria, Virginia, home. Here it is: In 2011, Edith was diagnosed with moderate dementia, leaving her daughters Ernestine Yates, Patricia Barber and Rebecca Wright to chart her future. End of story for some viewers, maybe. I know my intention is to review the documentary. It was concerning, since Im the one who was legally responsible for her and I didnt know what was going on, Niesen said. (Although Wright claimed a doctor had seen her mother and agreed to the medication changes, when Caldwell checked, she learned that wasnt true, according to the report.). I know in my heart, I gave my fiancee my everything in those months, and thats what is important. Asked to investigate the circumstances under which Edith was wed, Bushman, the guardian ad litem, wrote in a court filing that he determined that Ms. McLEAN, Va. (AP) A judge says a 96-year-old woman whose late-life marriage to a 95-year-old beau made national news should be returned to her longtime northern Virginia home after the musician Cher promised to pay to fix it up. In December 2013, court records show a geriatric care manager determined that Edith required extensive, round-the-clock assistance with all routine activities. That year, a court declared Edith incompetent and named Yates her legal guardian, according to court records. McLEAN, Virginia A judge says a 96-year-old woman whose late-life marriage to a 95-year-old beau made national news should be returned to her longtime northern Virginia home after the musician Cher promised to pay to fix it up. As a columnist who covers aging, Im familiar with such stories. Later that month, Harrison died. . 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