Father of Terri Schiavo, Robert Schindler Sr. Passed Away

Father of Terri Schiavo, Robert Schindler Sr. Passed Away August 29, 2009
ST. PETERSBURG, FL, Aug. 29 /Christian Newswire/ -- Robert S. Schindler, Sr., of Gulfport, Florida, father of the late Terri Schindler Schiavo, passed away August 29, 2009 from heart failure at Northside Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Robert fought valiantly to save the life of his brain–injured daughter Terri in the landmark right to life case that culminated in her imposed death by court–ordered starvation and thirst on March 31, 2005. After Terri's death, along with his wife Mary, daughter Suzanne (Schindler) Vitadamo and son Bobby Schindler, he founded the Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation in St. Petersburg dedicated to supporting other families faced with the same need to fight for the rights of their disabled or otherwise vulnerable loved ones.

Robert was born in Philadelphia on October 23, 1937 and was 71 years of age. Proceeded in death by his daughter Theresa Schindler. He is survived by his wife Mary, daughter Suzanne Vitadamo (Michael), son Bobby Schindler and granddaughter Alexandra.

A Mass of Christian burial with visitation preceding will be scheduled to take place in Philadelphia, PA. Times and location will be announced at a later date.

Memorials may be made to the Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation, 5562 Central Avenue, Suite 2, Saint Petersburg, FL 33707, phone 727-490-7603.

Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation

A Pro-Life Episode of House

Christine writes about a recent episode of House, and its pro-life message. Since this one aired this week it was particularly good timing since we just had the 4th anniversary of Terri Schiavo's death.

Terri

December 3, 1963 - March 31, 2005

I always remember the date, its the same day (March 31st) that my sister died.

Life for Lauren

Sometimes I forget to make the mental leap of writing about things on my blog that I have written about on message boards. It just occurred to me that while I had written about Lauren Richardson on Cbabes, I hadn't done so here.



Lauren is at the center of another end of life battle like Terri Schiavo, except in this case the sides fighting are her parents. Lauren's mother would like to remove the feeding tube, and Lauren's father would like to take care of her and try to rehabilitate her. This article from the Delaware News Journal on January 31st gives an overview of the case.

There was at one time a youtube video up showing Lauren's interaction with people, but it has since taken down. The court has ordered Lauren's Father, Randy Richardson, to refrain from posting any video of his daughter. He said, "The lawyer ... is more interested in preserving my daughter's right to privacy than protecting her life". This doesn't surprise me one bit. The wheels always seem to turn in the direction of death. Why should the public be able to see the condition of a woman about to starved to death?

The Diocese of Wilmington has released a statement supporting Lauren's right to life. For that I am glad, I always felt that the church did not stand up enough for Terri Schiavo.

Diocese of Wilmington statement on Lauren Richardson

It has been reported in the Wilmington News Journal that a Delaware court gave guardianship of Lauren Richardson to her mother for the stated purpose of removing her feeding tube to end her life. Lauren is a 23-year-old woman who is disabled with significant brain damage following the tragic loss of oxygen to her brain. Because of her condition, Lauren cannot feed herself and needs a feeding tube in order to live. It is reported that Lauren is in a stable condition, appears to be physically comfortable and is not suffering from any special burdens from the feeding tube. Her father holds out hope that Lauren’s condition will improve with proper therapy, but even in the absence of any recovery he is committed to caring for her.

Over her father’s objection, and although her needs were being taken care of, the court concluded that her mother should have custody so her feeding tube could be removed. Unless the custody decision is reversed, or her mother changes her mind, this court order spells death for Lauren because removing her feeding tube will cause her to die of dehydration and starvation within days after their removal.

We understand her mother’s grief over Lauren’s illness, and we have no doubt that she is trying to do what she thinks is best for her. Situations such as this are extremely difficult and heart-wrenching for family members. They deserve our concern and solicitude. But euthanasia, starvation and dehydration are never right for anyone. Nor are they an entirely private matter. Society has a vested interest in actions that cause the deaths of other humans, and, as a society we need to cherish the gift of life, every life, and not find reasons to cause death.

The Catholic Diocese of Wilmington strongly supports Lauren’s right to life and opposes any actions taken to end it. The Catholic Diocese affirms the Right to Life of every human person, regardless of disability, age or level of cognitive ability.

The removal of life-sustaining care from patients such as Lauren with the intent to end their lives is, according to our shared moral sense, a form of euthanasia and is a fundamental violation of Lauren’s human rights. Disabled patients like Lauren who cannot assert their own rights are in special need of our community’s loving concern and solicitude for their wellbeing. Lauren deserves medical care and treatment and should not have life sustaining food and water taken away from her.

Bishop Saltarelli asks for prayers for Lauren and all of the members of her family. He is praying that this decision will be reversed, Lauren’s right to life will be protected and that our courts will respect the fundamental natural right to life of all persons from conception until natural death.

Wesley J. Smith has had a few good recent posts about Lauren, here and here. As well as a post from The Passionate Pro-Lifer.

March 31

March 31st will always be prominent in my mind. Two years ago today Terri Schiavo was murdered by the state and her husband.

Also on March 31 in 1998 my sister died.

Bobby Schindler Blasts Bishop Lynch

March 9, 2007
Bishop Robert Lynch
Diocese of Saint Petersburg
6363 9th Avenue North
Saint Petersburg, Florida 33710

Bishop Lynch:

Speaking on behalf of my family, my intention was to write you a letter
subsequent to my sister Terri Schiavo’s death in order to explain to you
why I hold you more accountable for her horrific death than Michael
Schiavo, his attorney, and even the judge that ordered her to die.

In something of a bitter irony, however, it wasn’t until I came across your
recent article in the Tampa Tribune, where your own words succeeded in
saying much of what I wanted to say, that I was finally motivated to
write.

In the opening paragraph of your commentary, “The Homeless Are
Challenge To Our Cities And Our Faith,” you said “The challenge of the
homeless in St. Petersburg has made national news and it has been
embarrassing to many people. I am convinced that both on Judgment
Day and in history, we will most likely be judged not by the things which
we might have considered personally important to ourselves in life but
how we took care of others less fortunate.” A prophetic statement indeed
— and one in complete conformity with the words of our Lord in Matthew
25:31-46.

You then went on to say in the beginning of the next paragraph, “The
faces which may haunt each of us on Judgment Day may well be those of
people who have approached us for assistance and were turned away.”
Bishop Lynch, I couldn’t have said it better myself. Instead of writing a
lengthy letter explaining the hypocrisy of your words, let me just say the
following:

The barbarism and nightmare of Terri’s two week death by thirst and
starvation will be forever seared into my family’s memory. It is
incomprehensible to us that a nation supposedly built on basic Judeo-
Christian principles would allow something so wicked to happen.

That is, until one realizes that just as the Culture of Death made a
triumphal entry into our nation in 1973, via legalized abortion, without
so much as a whimper of protest from those with the God–given
authority to stop it, so now our disabled and elderly are being targeted
for death. The bottom line is, when apostolic grace and responsibility are
abdicated, innocent people die.

Fortunately, my family was provided much needed comfort and strength
by an enormous outpouring of prayers of support, including the
unwavering support of the Holy See, which to this day continues to arrive
for our family.

Even more uplifting are the stories we receive almost daily of how my
sister has, in a special way, touched the hearts and changed the lives of
so many people, not only in our country, but all over the world. So much
so that there are efforts being made by people world-wide to promote
Terri’s cause for beatification.

Terri’s legacy is one of life and love. Sadly, your legacy will be that of the
shepherd that stood silently by as one of his innocent disabled lambs
was slowly and needlessly slaughtered by removing her food and water —
while you persistently ignored the cries of her family for help (“her family”
being the ones who merely wanted to care for her.)

You should not need to be reminded of the many passages of Scripture
that condemn the shepherds that “pasture themselves on their sheep,” or
Christ’s admonition to St. Peter to “feed My lambs,” etc. As my family and
I dedicate the remainder of our lives to saving other innocent lambs
targeted by the Death Culture, I beg the Lord to spare us another
successor of the apostles who would exhibit the same scandalous
inaction and silence by which you remain complicit in my sister’s murder
via euthanasia.

I realize that for the sake of my salvation I must come to a point to at
least want to forgive you, Bishop Lynch, for aiding and giving comfort to
the evildoers who took my sister’s innocent and vulnerable life (and yes,
she was objectively more innocent and more vulnerable than perhaps
any homeless person.) The Catholic Church however, has spoken on
Terri’s case, and she has decreed in favor of Terri’s right to life and
everything our family did to try to save her.

Your behaviors, in contrast, have brought scandal to the Universal
Church and to the faithful, particularly here in Florida. Your indifference
toward the Truth is appalling, but seems to be indicative of the all-tooprevalent
corruption of priestly formation in the 1960’s and 70’s, so
perhaps your culpability is somewhat mitigated. Even so, the fact of my
sister’s murder under your “pastoral care” is a fact you should
acknowledge publicly.

This season of Lent is one well suited to seek public forgiveness and
make public reparation for public scandal.

At least until that happens, I regret that I must remain, as you said, the
face that haunts you as someone that did approach you for assistance
and was turned away.

May God have mercy on you, and may my holy sister Terri pray for us
all.

Sincerely,
Bobby Schindler

Link

Bobby Schindler Endorses Brownback for President

Bobby Schindler, Brother of Terri Schiavo, Endorses Brownback for President

Bobby Schindler Endorses Brownback for President Terri Schiavo's brother thanks Brownback for his efforts to protect all human life

ALEXANDRIA , Va. - U.S. Senator Sam Brownback received an endorsement today from Bobby Schindler, the brother of the late Terri Schiavo. Schiavo died nearly two years ago from starvation and dehydration after a court mandated the removal of her feeding tube, sparking a nationwide bipartisan effort to save her life.

"My family will never forget Sam Brownback's valiant efforts to save my sister's life," said Schindler. "Sam Brownback is the pro-life conservative we can trust to stand for all life, regardless of political calculations."

This endorsement comes one day after Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney stated his opposition to the efforts of Florida Governor Jeb Bush and the Florida legislature to save Terri from her court-ordered starvation and dehydration: "I think it's probably best to leave these kinds of matters in the hands of the courts," Romney said yesterday to Bay News Channel 9 in Florida.

"Mitt Romney's alleged pro-life conversion evidently does not to apply to all human life," said Schindler. "The pro-life movement needs a leader we can trust in 2008 and I know Sam Brownback is that leader."

In 2005, Brownback joined the family of Terri Schiavo to launch the Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to ensuring the rights of disabled, elderly, and vulnerable citizens against care-rationing, euthanasia, and medical killing.

Brownback commented, "Terri's plight highlighted the core question about the protection of human life: does the dignity with which we treat individuals depend on their physical or mental status as human beings? If a person's dignity depends only on his or her physical status, then life and death decisions about the most vulnerable among us become relative matters to be determined by doctors, judges, lawyers, and legislatures. Once we go down the path of valuing some lives more than others, of saying that people with disabilities don't have the same dignity and right to life as others, there are very few means not justified by the sinister end of a disability-free society. The way a society treats individuals with disabilities is a measure of the greatness of that society."

Link