The Fight for a Good Death
Note: this post addresses the subject of MAID (medical aid in dying). If this is not a good time for you to read about such a heavy topic, please click away. I’ll be back next week with something lighter.
I mentioned last time that I’ve had a house full of guests this month. One such visitor was Shannon Winakur. I’ve known Shannon for over 35 years. Neither of us had played the sport before, but in college we both found our way onto the JV squash team. It was everything I wanted from sports: camaraderie, intensity, and inspiration (the good players were really good).
After graduating, Shannon and I stayed in touch. She married a classmate, became a cardiologist, and raised a family. We started chatting more frequently when Shannon’s MS propelled her to retire from medicine early; there was a lot to think through.
It was around that time that Shannon told me about her dear friend Laura—that Laura had been diagnosed with ALS at age 50, it was progressing unfathomably fast, and that she didn’t want to live trapped in a body that no longer worked.
For Shannon, the decision to support Laura in accessing medical aid in dying (MAID) was straightforward: Shannon had devoted her career to the relief of suffering, and she saw the pursuit of MAID in Laura’s case as consistent with that calling.
The problem was that MAID was not legal in either Laura’s home state of Virginia or Shannon’s home state of Maryland. What followed was months of excruciating problem solving: Washington, D.C., was a nearby option, with a manageable residency requirement, but the relevant law was under attack. What if it got overturned at exactly the wrong time? Should they just go to Switzerland, even though that would involve considerable expense? What about Vermont, which would require at least two long car trips but had no residency requirement?
As Shannon describes it, this was the kind of travel planning that no one should ever have to do. MAID, she feels, should be accessible to everyone who meets the strict eligibility requirements, without the expense and stress of leaving home.
I share this view, so during Shannon’s visit to Bainbridge*, I asked her to tell Laura’s story—and to describe the advocacy work she is now doing in Laura’s memory. My husband Chris** distilled that conversation into this seven-minute video. I hope you’ll watch it.
*Shannon’s stay wasn’t all work. We also walked the neighborhood and visited the labyrinth, our resident troll, and the Founders’ Courts. (Pickleball was invented on Bainbridge in 1965, and the island would very much like everyone to know that.) My personal island tour is not complete without a visit to the town dump in my tiny little truck, so we also went there. The thumbnail pic for this post shows Shannon braced for my left-handed shifting.
**A lifelong documentarian, Chris conducts research and makes videos for a living. I’m always grateful when he’s willing to lend his talents pro bono.
