Rickey will have a viewing Sunday night followed by a viewing and funeral on Monday. The information is in the attached obituary. There will also be a live stream in Monday morning (Link is also in the obituary.)

https://www.walkersanderson.com/obituaries/Rickey-Glen-Nielsen?obId=32092793

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Rickey passed away peacefully early this morning, surrounded by his family. We are grateful for so many who have been there to support Rickey and Mari through his health struggles the past several years. We have also felt your love, prayers, and support these past few weeks.

He had so many friends and family visit him since he got home Friday evening, which is a blessing to our family, and especially to him and Mari. We don't have any funeral plans set yet, but we will post them here when they are finalized.

Again, thanks so very much to all of you, and we appreciate those whose donations will be a big help, and if you are able, continued donations would really help with medical bills and funeral expenses.

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Rickey has made the difficult decision to be placed on hospice.

He has been so sick these past several years with so many trips to the Emergency room and hospitalizations because of chronic pancreatitis, bowel obstructions, liver problems and pain, complicated by his Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis, led him to make this choice.

He is so frail and in constant severe pain, along with the fact that there are no further treatments he would be eligible for, so he chose to go on hospice.

He is at peace with his decision and isn't afraid to pass away

Right now, we are making arrangements for a hospice center to move to after he spends a few more days in the hospital.

However, it appears that his insurance does not cover expenses to be in a care center, so we could really use your support to help cover hospice and funeral expenses. We express our thanks to those who have already donated, and if you feel inclined, could you share his go fund me link on your social media pages

Thank you for your love, support, and prayers. We really feel lifted up because of you

**UPDATE**

Last week, Rickey was transferred back to Utah Vally Hospital by ambulance with what appeared to be another bowel blockage. They put a suction tube into his stomach and got just short of 3 liters of bile and tube feed that had backed up, causing the problem. The surgeon told him that if the blockage didn't resolve, or if it caused a perforation, there was nothing they could do because of his frail condition, and that anything they did to try and fix would cause irreparable damage. They plan on transferring him back to the specialty hospital this week sometime. The plan going forward, is to continue treating him and work towards strengthening him, and getting weight on him, but future surgeries and other interventions are no longer an option. We appreciate your continued prayers, love and support, and ask that if you are able to, could you please help them financially through this go fund me or through my dads venmo.

**UPDATE**

Update on Rickey... After quite a process with insurance, he was finally approved to be transferred on Wednesday to the Utah Valley Specialty Hospital, located in the Riverwoods in Provo. He had to be transferred by ambulance, and their insurance doesn't cover it. Mari met them at the ambulance bay with their dog Willow, and it was quite the happy reunion. He was also only approved for 25 days at the speciality hospital, and then he will have to be transferred by ambulance again to a different long term care facility to continue rehab. He still has a LONG way to go in his recovery. His weight is down to 115 lbs, and hopefully, they can increase his tube feedings enough that he can start absorbing calories without upsetting his intestines that are still trying to wake up and learn to work again. We appreciate the support and prayers from all of you and ask that you continue to remember them in your thoughts and prayers. We also ask if you're able to, if you could help them with a donation towards their medical needs. For those of you who would rather use venmo, please send it to my dad and he will make sure it gets to them. Thank you for your prayers on his behalf!

**UPDATE**

Rickey was finally moved from the ICU to a bed on the medical floor. He has literally lost ALL of his muscle mass because his bowels wouldn't handle the tube feedings, which are designed to give him calories. His current weight is 115 pounds, and he has absolutely no strength. He is finally starting to tolerate his tube feedings, but he has a long way to go. If all goes as planned, he will be transferred to a long-term rehab facility in the next few weeks to continue his recovery. Many have expressed the desire to use venmo rather than Go-Fund-Me, so I am including my dads Venmo. Please continue to support them during this very difficult time. They are going to have a lot of medical debt and will definitely need continued financial help and prayers.

**UPDATE**

Rickey was able to be taken off the ventilator today! He is still getting oxygen through a nasal canula and will for a while. My motto is baby steps are still steps! He still has a LONG recovery ahead of him. Physical therapy has been coming every day helping him move. He has basically lost ALL muscle tone. When he's well enough to be discharged from the hospital he will be transported to a long-term care facility until he is strong enough to care for himself. We would appreciate your continued donations and prayers!

Hi family and friends of Rickey and Mari. I just wanted to let you know about Rickey and ask for your prayers on his behalf. He has been in the intensive care unit for 3 weeks now and is still in critical condition. He has had 3 surgeries on his abdomen and has had 2 sections of his intestines removed because they were dying.

He has a bad infection that they are trying to figure out, and he now has an infectious disease specialist involved in his care.

When he is stable enough to leave the hospital, he will have to go to a long term rehab facility for several weeks to help him gain back his strength and ability so that he can return back home.

As a family, we could really use your support and prayers on his behalf. This is a go fund me set up to help with medical bills and to help with their everyday living expenses. Between medical bills and trying to be with Rickey all day, I know that Mari is in need of some help. Mari has taken unpaid leave to be with him each day as he faces more trials. So any help would be appreciated.

Please don't feel obligated to contribute, but if you can, we would be very grateful.