Terri Schiavo

 

Theresa Marie "Terri" Schiavo (nee Schindler) was born in Pennsylvania on December 3, 1963.  As a teenager, she struggled with obesity and was often dieting.  By the time she entered Bucks County Community College, she seemed to have her weight under control.  There she met fellow student Michael Schiavo in 1982, whom she married just two years later.

In 1986, Terri's parents moved to Florida, so she and Michael decided to relocate there as well.  She took a job as a bookkeeper while Michael became a restaurant manager.

For the first few years, the couple enjoyed a great life together.  Tragedy struck however on the morning of February 25, 1990, when Terri collapsed in the hallway of their apartment building.  Michael called the paramedics, but by the time they arrived she had stopped breathing and had no pulse.  They were unable to resuscitate her, but they transported her to a nearby hospital where she was hooked up to a ventilator.

Upon examination, doctors determined that Terri had suffered a cardiac arrest brought on by another round of excessive dieting, consisting of nothing but ice tea for an unspecified period, resulting in an electrolyte imbalance.  She was hooked up to a series of feeding tubes, but within one year of her admission, doctors diagnosed her as being in a persistent vegetative state with little chance of recovery.

Michael Schiavo, 2005.

Two years later, Michael filed his first lawsuit in the case.  He took Terri's obstetrician to court, citing malpractice, claiming the doctor had failed to diagnose her as being bulimic.  Although the jury felt that Terri herself was also to blame for her disorder, they ultimately awarded her (and Michael as her executor) $2 million.  After court costs and attorney fees, Michael received $300,000, while the remaining $750,000 was put into a trust fund for Terri's medical care.

For the next few years, Michael and the Schindlers got along as best they could under very difficult circumstances.  This would come to an end in May 1998 however, when Michael filed his first petition to have Terri's feeding tube removed.  The Schindlers, devoutly Catholic, opposed the action and believed that Terri would have opposed it as well.  Schiavo contended that Terri had made this request of him when she was still capable of doing so.

The Schindlers asked Michael to divorce Terri so that they could assume responsibility for her care.  Michael refused however, continuing to state that Terri had made her final wishes clear to him and that he was only honoring her request.  However, the couple had never filed a living will, so he had no legal proof of her request.  Both sides contended that the other was trying to gain control of Terri's estate, the considerable sum received during the first lawsuit.  

The lawsuits would continue for the next seven years, and would ultimately involve several notable politicians, including Florida Governor Jeb Bush and his older brother and President George W. Bush.  But on March 18, 2005, Judge George Greer of Pinellas County ordered Terri's feeding tube removed.  The legal wrangling would continue for another week or so, but ultimately, Greer's decision stood.  Terri died on March 31, 2005.  She was 41 years old. 

Terri was cremated and her ashes were buried at Sylvan Abbey Memorial Park in Clearwater, Florida.  Michael Schiavo disregarded court orders requiring him to provide this location to the Schiavo family.  They were ultimately informed by reporters of the burial location.  

Inscription:
"Born December 3, 1963. 
Departed This Earth February 25, 1990
At Peace March 31, 2005
I Kept My Promise"

It should be no mystery who paid for the marker.  He also commissioned a memorial bench:

Rest in peace Terri.

Trivia

• Terri's death certificate lists her cause of death as "undetermined."
  
  
• A few months after Terri's death, Michael started TerriPAC, a political action committee designed to financially support right-to-die candidates and oppose those who had become involved in his wife's case.  After a series of accounting irregularities, Michael was fined by the Federal Election Commission and ultimately closed the PAC just one year later.
  
  
• The Schindlers founded The Terry Schiavo Foundation, an organization designed to help families in similar situations.  Michael intervened however, claiming that they were improperly using her name, something he had jurisdiction over.  It has since been renamed The Terry Schiavo Life and Hope Network.
  
  
• In 2006, both Michael and the Schindlers released books chronicling their version of events.  Michael's was entitled Terri: The Truth.  The Schindler's version was titled A Life That Matters: The Legacy of Terri Schiavo.  Both are available from Amazon.