Terminally ill dad sips final beer with his sons – knowing it's the last moment they'll share
It is totally normal to think about what our last moment would look like on Earth. We’re sure to daydream about how we would do it at least once and there are so many different ways. Some people would go travel the world one last time while others would maybe have one final, big cheeseburger with a side of fries and a milkshake. Some people would probably like to have one last conversation with a special loved one.
87-year-old Nortbert Schemm’s final dying wish was an attainable one. He simply wanted to crack one last beer with his beloved sons.
So that is exactly what they did. Nortbert’s family, from Appleton, Wisconsin, all gathered around his bed one final time and cracked open a couple of ice cold Bud Lights. It was exactly what he wanted — his wife Joanne with their children, Bob, Tom and John, along with his grandson, Adam Schemm.
Adam shared a photo of the sweet moment via Twitter, where it suddenly went viral. The whole world was in awe at how simple and touching his wish was. It got over 32k retweets and 329k likes as well as thousands of responses.
“My grandfather passed away today,” Adam wrote in the caption of the photo. “Last night all he wanted to do was to have one last beer with his sons.”
Their father, who was suffering from stage 4 colon cancer, sadly passed away the next night.
“That moment meant so much to my grandfather,” Adam Schemm told TODAY Parents. “You can tell they all know what’s gonna happen, and they just want to enjoy being together. They all have this look of closure.”
“It was the last 90 minutes that they really had him,” Adam continued to tell TODAY. “They drank beer and talked about family and he made everyone promise to take care of my grandmother. They were married for 65 years.”
What makes this extra special is that many people responded to the photo, explaining that they did something similar when one of their loved ones passed away.
“Did the same thing with my Dad in May. Cold beer and a Yankee game. My condolences,” Robert Dorsch wrote along with a photo of the moment.
“My grandmom did the same thing but with shots of Bailey’s,” another user, @brusssproutsrock, responded with a photo.
Adam, who was initially hesitant to share the photo with the Internet, ended up feeling so glad that he did. The overwhelmingly positive response made him feel like he wasn’t alone — it reminded him that other people were going through the same thing.
“I don’t know you… but I felt this. Days before my grandpa passed he let my dad and I know he wanted a cigar and a beer,” Ben Riggs also shared.
He saw how understanding and compassionate the world can still be.
He also added that if his grandfather were still here today, he would definitely get a kick out of his 15 minutes of viral fame. We can’t blame him — it’s pretty awesome!
See the viral tweet below.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
My grandfather passed away today.
Last night all he wanted to do was to have one last beer with his sons. pic.twitter.com/6FnCGtG9zW
— Adam Schemm (@AdamSchemm) November 21, 2019