Support a Peaceful Farewell for a Beloved Dad

Hey! My name is Allie Rhodes Mattison. My Daddy is Doug Rhodes, a 68-year-old Westminster native. I am his only child, and he has never been married.

Yesterday around 11:30 AM, my Daddy was found unresponsive. EMS was called, and he was immediately taken by ambulance to Prisma in Oconee. During transport, it was deemed that he had suffered a stroke. He was aspirating and choking. A tracheostomy was performed, and a call was made to have Life-flight waiting for his arrival. He was airlifted to GHS. My Daddy's left artery is 100% clogged. During arrival, several attempts to place a life-saving stent were performed, but unfortunately, they were unsuccessful. His right artery kept collapsing, making it impossible to insert the stent successfully. Myself and his sisters tried for several hours to locate his whereabouts, finally discovering he was brought in as a Trauma-Mass to the Neuro ICU. His wallet and ID were left at home, so he was basically tagged as a John Doe.

I was given two options: continue extensive care where the doctors and nurses will continue to poke, pinch, perform tests, and draw blood with a slim chance of survival only to end up in a nursing home with a poor quality of life. I was informed that he wouldn't be returning home. My other option was to opt for Comfort Care. Meaning they would remove all the tubes, machines etc. and let him breathe on his own and to pass peacefully God willing. Test were preformed last night and this morning determining there isn't any improvement in brain function and is actually worsening as time passes. I know this means that inevitably I am going to lose my Daddy. At 7:30PM (9/20/24) I decided to transfer him to Hospice of the Upstate to hopefully allow a more peaceful transition. Im praying he makes it, there is a chance he will pass during the transfer. I say all this to say he doesn’t have life insurance, and he deserves a proper burial. Any little bit helps me get him the burial and service he deserves. I really want to have a natural burial preformed at Ramsby Creek in Westminster SC. My Daddy was a river rat and most of my childhood memories were made at Chau Ram. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Continued prayers are appreciated in the days to come!