Funeral Services for Gary Mercury

On October 7, 2016, my dad was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer which had metastasized to his brain and bones.

After receiving his last whole brain radiation treatment on November 16th, his 71st birthday, and after 5 weeks in the hospital, he was ready for the next stage of our journey to bring him home. I managed to get my dad into Helen Hayes for acute rehab, where he spent 3 weeks with an amazing team of physical,occupational and speech therapists. They had my dad back on his feet and he was getting a little better each day.

We were able to bring my dad home 10 days before Christmas and I couldn't have been more relieved, excited and hopeful. Unfortunately, within 5 days of him being home, he came down with a respiratory virus which sent him back to the hospital. His lung function was already compromised because of the cancer. He became more and more congested which made his breathing difficult. Due to overall weakness he was aspirating food and liquids and developed aspiration pneumonia as well. On January 4th, I received a call from the doctor that my father's breathing was not improving and they didnt expect him to live more than a few weeks.

On the evening of the 4th I went to see my dad after work and his breathing was labored and he looked very uncomfortable He expressed to me that he was tired of living like that day after day and not feeling like he was getting better. He was working so hard to breathe. He told me I needed to let him go, that he had to leave. I could see in his eyes he was tired of fighting. He kissed my hand, and he apologized.

On January 10, my father passed at 6:44am in the presence of my mom at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital. I knew my dad's time was limited due to the nature of his illness, however, I did not expect it to be three months.

I feel that our time was cut short but I am thankful for the three months I spent with him prior to his passing. I always had been a Daddy's girl, but during those three months, I feel that my dad and I became the closest we had ever been and I know my dad agreed. What brings me peace now is knowing that I advocated for my dad best I could and made sure he saw all the best doctors and specialists in the field. I spent as much time with him as I could, said what was on my heart, making sure nothing was left unsaid.

My dad left behind my mother, Mary Mercury, age 76, myself and my 2 year old son, Kaiel Mercury Hill. My father, Gary, was an only child as am I, so with regards to decision making, finances and planning, it has become quite overwhleming for me and my mom. As a single mom and an only child,  We are very limited with family support.

For those that knew my dad, he was hard working and helped many people in the community over the years. He was an honest business man and was great at what he did. He taught me so much of what I know, even during the last 3 months of his life. He absolutely adored my 2 year old son, who brought my dad so much happiness. He truly will be missed by many.

For those that know me, I am not one to ask for money, especially publicly. I was hesitant to start this page, but we truly are short for my dad's funeral expenses and I do not want to leave my mom with nothing to allow her to be able to pay bills until we get her some help.

Unfortunately my dad did not have any life insurance policies and did not leave much behind. With all the expenses of traveling back and forth to the city, parking, tolls, etc. and then all his medications when he came home after rehab, copays for medical equipment, it took from the little reserve he had. My mom and I, along with whats left of my Dad's money, are able to fund most of his funeral and cremation costs at this point, however we still are falling a little short. Because of this I have not finalized arragments and hate the feeling of having to negotiate with funeral directors and minimizing my dad's services.

For anyone in a position to help, anything would be appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to read ♡