Client Success Stories

"They were able to allow my father his dignity"
The late Radford Hyde, a retired Army colonel, was able to continue cheering on his beloved Huskers at Memorial Stadium, as he had for decades, after becoming ill. Next to his wheelchair, helping with the rah rahs, was his in-home caretaker.

Hyde was among the growing number of elderly who continue to live independent lives with the support of in-home care. By 2030, there will be 70 million older persons, more than twice than there were in 1997. Long-term care is one of the fastest-growing needs of the elderly.

Unlike home health care that is intended for a short term, long-term care may be needed for the rest of an individual’s life. In some cases, the care extends lives. Or so believes Bev Hyde, daughter of Colonel Hyde. Her father was an insulin-dependent diabetic who required dialysis three times a week.

“He was almost 81 when he died,” she said. “He way outlived all the predictions. Having someone with him, making sure he got to doctor’s appointments, calling me, all this extended his life.”

She used the services of the Omaha-based agency, Right at Home. “I can’t tell you what an umbilical cord they were to keep Dad’s and Helen’s wishes to stay as independent as possible,” said Hyde, who lives in Virginia Beach, Va., 1,500 miles from Omaha.

“My parents loved Allen and his ladies,” she said, referring to Right at Home president, Allen Hager.

Hyde said clients are treated with dignity by the agency’s caregivers. “They respect these people who have lived their lives and earned their wings, and that makes a difference. I am so thankful to Allen and his group that they were able to allow my father his dignity, his home and his life.”

Over an Army career that spanned 31 years, he went from buck private to full colonel and was an infantry paratrooper. During World War II, Col. Radford Hyde worked on the secret Manhattan Project that developed the atomic bomb.

He is now among the military heroes honored at the Army’s National Infantry Museum in Fort Benning, Georgia. Hyde and his wife, Helen, are buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Growing up in Annapolis, Md., he was about the only man in his family who did not attend the Naval academy there.

“When Army played Navy, it was a big deal at family gatherings,” his daughter laughed.

After retiring from the Army, he moved to Omaha, his wife’s home town. Immediately he became a Big Red fan, attending all games home and away. In fact, he held season tickets for so long that the university’s computer could not track back that far.

He also was a donor to the University of Nebraska football program and attended the weekly breakfasts.

After he became ill, he was able to attend home games with the help of his Right at Home caregiver, who sat next to him in the handicapped section that accommodated his wheelchair. When Hyde was in the hospital, Nebraska Coach Tom Osborne called the devoted fan and sent autographed team photos.

“Everywhere I went, people knew about Dad and would say, ‘Do you know your father got a call from Tom Osborne?’” Bev Hyde said.
“He thought Bob Devaney and Tom Osborne walked on water.”

His daughter says that Hyde was a generous man, who kept his philanthropy private: “He was a Santa Claus for the Mangelson’s Store for years and also for The Salvation Army. Any money raised went to charity, but he would not take credit for it.”

One year, he arranged air fare and a hotel room for the mother of a Husker football player so she could see her son play in the Orange Bowl. But, unless she reads this, she probably will never know who her “Santa Claus” was.

In the Army, he was known as “First to the Troops,” and had a sign that read that way as a reminder that the troops came first.
“He was the most giving, loving person in the whole world and didn’t want anyone to know it,” Bev Hyde said, adding that her father kept a gruff exterior that even intimidated his children.

“Dad was a cantankerous old fellow, and my siblings had a hard time dealing with it,” she said. “So my husband and I ended up taking care of him. It was a pleasure and a joy. You can never thank your parents enough.”

The in-home care provided by Right at Home began with Helen Hyde, who was Bev Hyde’s stepmother. She needed help with dressing, bathing and getting around. After she died, care continued for her husband.

Beg as she would, Bev Hyde could not get her father to move to Virginia to live with her. She has children, ages 5 to 20, and both she and her husband run their own businesses. Without the in-home care provided, she does not know what would have happened.

“My parents could not have continued to live at Pacific Springs Village without Allen and his people,” she said. “We had continuous contact with the ladies who helped out.”

During the last year of his life, Mary Holmgren was Hyde’s primary caregiver.

“Every day, she would write down what went on in the hospital and call me. That’s what I mean by going the extra mile,” Bev Hyde said. “I think of her as part of my family and have invited her to come to Virginia and visit.”

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