To understand who a person is, you have to examine the life lived. Who I was is the culmination of what I had done, who I have known, where I have been and all that I had seen. My life was built upon my past, a past filled with hard work and duty, a life of a protector. In the end, I believe I was a good son, a true friend, a persistent scholar, a loyal and loving husband, and a dad who tried my best every day to be someone my children could trust to only want the best for them. I like to think that I was a man of faith. I know that my life was blessed.
The journey of my life began when I was born Christopher John Waddell. I came into the world on May 11, 1950, in Chicago, Illinois. My parents were Paul and Lois Waddell, and I had an older brother, Jeff. I grew up in the Chicago area for the first few years of my life and then my family moved to Pasadena, California for a short time before moving to La Canada-Flintridge. This would remain my home until my marriage --- a place of lazy days spent by the pool or up in the orchard area behind the pool or just hanging out with friends playing chess or board games or video games.
Throughout my school years, learning proved to be a huge challenge for me. I was diagnosed with severe learning difficulties, including dyslexia, but this didn't stop me from loving school and was definitely not an excuse that my parents would accept for not doing my best. It may have taken me ten times longer to learn something but once it was planted in my brain, there it stayed! And I truly enjoyed learning new things. I was a proud graduate of La Canada High School where I participated in marching band as a trumpet and tuba player. I loved the camaraderie of my fellow band members and some of my fondest memories of high school derive from my experiences in band and orchestra. In high school I also developed my love for photography. What a wonderful way to be creative and let pictures speak for me.
Following high school, I wasn't sure that college would be possible for me due to my learning challenges but my parents, especially my father, encouraged me to pursue the dream of a college education. I attended Pasadena City College where I further explored the possibility of photography as a career goal. I also continued to enjoy marching band membership and was thrilled to be able to march in the Rose Parade. Five miles of marching across Colorado Boulevard while playing the big ol' tuba was harder than I thought it would be but here, once again, the fellowship of my band mates was rewarding and made all the hard work worthwhile. It was at PCC that I met Joan, who was a flag girl with the band. She turned out to be the love of my life and my future wife some years down the road.
The next stop on my academic journey was at the prestigious Art Center College of Design. I can't even begin to tell you how thrilled and proud I was to have been accepted here! My major was photography and here, again, my learning disabilities proved to be an enormous obstacle to overcome but I took advantage of every opportunity to get assistance and I worked my behind off to meet all the challenges that Art Center threw at me. My diligence and persistence paid off and as a result, I earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1975. What I didn't know is that my struggles did not go unnoticed by my graduating class members. When my name was called to accept my diploma, my entire graduating class stood up to give me a standing ovation. I was overwhelmed because I didn't think anyone was really paying attention to all I went through along the way and because I was the only one so recognized! What an honor and what a memorable moment for me.
It is said that love can't truly be defined. Instead, it must be experienced. This turned out to be absolutely true for me. Joan and I were introduced while attending PCC by a fellow band member who didn't particularly like either one of us and thought it would be an amusing joke to get us together and watch a disaster happen. Little did she know that Joan and I became the best of friends. Joan has always said that she knew long before I did that, we would spend our lives together but I finally got up the courage to ask her to marry me one evening when we were walking my dog, Fletcher, around the neighborhood near my home in La Canada. That was one of the scariest things I had ever done! We were married on February 4, 1984, at St. Elizabeth Catholic Church in Altadena, CA. Our Matron of Honor was Joan's sister, Robin Manly, and my Best Man was my brother, Jeff. The Mass was celebrated by Father Chris Sanger and Father Bernard Jennings. One of the stand-out stories that came from this wedding involved my niece, Shannon, who was about 5 years old at the time and was our flower girl. At the point where rings were exchanged between myself and Joan it seems that Shannon was feeling a bit left out or jealous and loudly asked the church in general when she would be getting a ring. That brought quite a few chuckles. Our reception was held at Pikes Verdugo and we honeymooned by driving up to the northern part of California, stopping in San Luis Obispo (best pizza on the planet there), San Simeon (to see Hearst Castle), and finally Carmel before making our way back home
Our first home together was in Pasadena --- a very small but cozy one bedroom apartment. Our first landlord had okayed us to have one cat but, at the time, we had two orange cats that Joan brought along from her home. We really couldn't bear the idea of getting rid of either of them, so we fibbed a bit and told the landlord that we only had one. It was somewhat nerve-wracking to be sure that both orange cats weren't seen together while we lived there!
When Joan and I decided it was time to start a family we were disappointed when no pregnancy seemed to want to happen. After consulting doctors, we were told that we would not be able to have children and that we should consider adopting children if wanted them. Imagine our surprise and delight when we had not only one "miracle" child born to us but we eventually had three "miracle" children born to our family! Just goes to show that there is often a bigger plan for us than doctors may know. Adam Fulton Waddell, our first child, was born on Valentine's Day 1988, followed by his sister, Brianna Faith, in January of 1990, and finally Jeremiah Luke in July 1992. Our family was complete. I had what some might consider "old fashioned" parental values, but I always wanted to be involved with every aspect of their lives. I became an expert diaper changer, learned how to comb the hair of a fussy girl in such a way that she was okay with it, and was an enthusiastic cheering section for my kids as they participated in sports and music performances. I was a proud papa and believe that I was a good dad as the years went on.
In my work life, photography turned out not to be a very good bill-paying form of employment, so I explored other avenues. One of my first jobs was at JCPenney in the video game department. A match made in heaven! I truly enjoyed that job. I also worked as a camera repair person at International Camera Repair and in many jobs within the printing industry, starting as a floor boy at Overland Printers, working as a photographer and jack-of-all-trades at McKenzie Graphics, and eventually moving on to Welsh Graphics, which later became known as GAC. I was a hard worker and tried to provide well for my family. During my time in the printing industry, in the years before safeguards were put in place for handling industrial chemicals, I was exposed to many hazardous cleaning products and inks and, in 1996, I was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease (PD) that was shown to have been triggered by my contact with these chemicals. By 1998, the PD had advanced to the point where it was impossible to continue working and so I retired from the world of paychecks in that year. This was a very sad and scary time for me, but my family stood by me and my faith saw me through many bad days. It is said that there is a silver lining to every black cloud. This turned out to be true regarding my Parkinson's Disease, too. As a result of my experience and my diagnosis, more safeguards are now in place within the industry and my case has been used as a precedent for others in the same boat.
In my retirement, I continued my desire to be life-long learner and tried to take a class at PCC or the Monrovia Adult School every semester. Most often, I took computer-related classes but also took some adaptive PE classes in order to try to combat the physical effects PD was having upon my body. I was a regular work-out member several times per week at the YMCA in Monrovia. Even when I was in the wheelchair more often than I was out of it, I took the bus to my destinations and didn't use PD as an excuse to feel sorry for myself. At Monrovia Adult School, I was honored to become the very first "Most Inspirational Student" and was awarded a beautiful plaque at a banquet where very nice things were said about my persistence and my ability to challenge other students to keep trying and to keep going even when things were tough. I didn't know I was doing anything special. I just kept plugging away and encouraged those around me to do the same.
Throughout my life, my Catholic faith was extremely important to me. I was a "cradle Catholic" and tried hard to understand my faith and to follow my faith. I was fortunate to be a member of St. Bede's Catholic Church through my growing up years. After I got married, Joan and I joined St. Andrew's Parish in Pasadena and then transferred to Holy Angels Parish when we moved to Arcadia. My two younger children were Altar Servers there and all three celebrated their first Communions at Holy Angels. In my later years, I rediscovered my love for the Mass celebrated in Latin, finding it to be very peaceful and a link to my faith as a child when, before the reforms of Vatican II, the Mass was always celebrated in Latin. I believed in the value of prayer to Mother Mary and found that praying the Rosary was a powerful tool in my spiritual repertoire.
As years went on, Parkinson's Disease continued to rear its ugly head. On Christmas Day of 2012, I became very sick, and paramedics had to be called to take me to the hospital. After spending a couple of weeks there, I bounced back and forth between the hospital and skilled nursing care as these medical angels tried to fight the good fight against my Parkinson's Disease and all the associated challenges that advanced PD brought along. Little did any of us know that Christmas Day would be my last day at home. My family was always by my side through the many months of treatment, the ups and the downs, and the unknowns but my poor, tired body just could go no further and on June 8, 2013, I passed away as a result of the Parkinson's Disease. My wife and my children were at my bedside. My Requiem Mass took place on June 25th at Holy Angels Church and my life was celebrated within this Mass by Father Michael Evans, who I considered to be a good friend and trusted counselor throughout many, many years.
As I left this earth, I left many people behind who were special to me. In addition to my own family, of course, I have to give a special thank you to my oldest and dearest friend of more than 50 years: Bill Biersach. This man stood by me in good times and bad times. We debated politics, religion, and every other topic under the sun and, through it all, remained the very best of friends. I was lucky to have Bill in my life. I left behind my brother, Jeff, his wife (Lynda) and children (Shannon and Shawn). Thank you, Jeff, for coming back to me in my time of need and traveling down the last road by my side. I wish I could thank all the doctors and nurses and caretakers who made my last months as comfortable as possible and who also tried to provide comfort and support to my wife and children. Kindred Transitional Care in Glendora was my home-away-from-home from January to June of 2013 and is where I took my last breath. I came to rely on these kind folks and they never let me down.
I encourage anyone who happens to read this biography of my life to think about supporting the Parkinson's Disease research and resource organizations that are currently making great strides toward eliminating this horrific disease. In particular, I owe a huge debt of gratitude to the Parkinson's Resource Organization (PRO) for their support and encouragement through the years. I learned a lot about PD from PRO and how to meet the challenges I would face throughout my battle with this monster.
I was fortunate in some ways to know that my days were coming to an end because I could prepare. My wife and I talked at length about many things over the last week of my life and I was not afraid to die. I was sad at the idea that I would miss milestones in the lives of my children, and I knew they would also be sad to be without me. I will miss you all and had some final thoughts that I wanted to give: Adam --- keep cooking. You're a sensitive and good-hearted young man and I am proud of who you have become. Brianna --- you are a beautiful and strong young woman. We chose your name because it means "strength" and you are definitely a force to be reckoned with! And Jeremiah --- you are a smart and kind young man. I was so proud to learn of your goal to join the Navy and sorry I won't be there to see this accomplishment in your life. And to my wife, Joan: thank you for always calling me "Number One" and for just being you.
It is said that some people can’t see the forest for the trees. I like to think that I had always been able to focus on each individual tree, tending to its needs, thus making the forest stronger as a whole. I had been called a trustworthy, pragmatic and sympathetic person, the kind of man to whom others are drawn. I suppose that was true. I do know that I always worked hard to be thorough and practical. And since I have always been very literal with my words, you always knew where you stood with me. I suppose, in a way, that sort of sums up everything that I had become. I am a life well lived, indeed. A life too short but full of influence upon others and a life to be remembered
