Despite his illness, he was committed to caring for him until the end: mourning for Karl Weiß

Created: 08/11/2022 17:59

By: Markus Schwarzkugler

Karl Weiß passed away shortly before his 63rd birthday.

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"It is the greatest gift that my image of humanity has changed so much," brain tumor patient Karl Weiß once told our newspaper.

Infinitely grateful for the love shown to him in his palliative care, he dedicated himself to caring for the rest of his life.

Now the remarkable Walpertskirchener has passed away.

Walpertskirchen – What to do if you are suddenly diagnosed with an incurable, fatal disease?

A brutal question for everyone she meets.

Also for Karl Weiß from Walpertskirchen.

At the end of his life he probably found one answer above all: be grateful.

"It is the greatest gift that my image of humanity has changed so much," he once told our newspaper with tears.

"The attention to humanity, to undivided attention" in his palliative care simply overwhelmed him.

And White used the time he had left to give something back.

He collected donations for the palliative care ward at the Wartenberg Clinic, where he shot an Instagram video in which he advocated improvements in the care sector.

And he supported the new Erdinger Sophienhospice with tips for improving the facility - since he worked in construction management, he was an expert.

"He was a very special person," says hospice manager Rita Gabler about Karl Weiß, who has now died at the age of 62.

Before that fateful day in November 2019, White was still “in another world”.

palliative care?

That affected him very little.

White worked in construction management.

"It's about fighting, about elbowing out, about selfishness," he once said.

But all that is forgotten when he receives the diagnosis on that day: a brain tumor, an incurable glioblastoma, is growing in his brain.

The diagnosis came as a shock to him, his wife Monika and their two adult children.

The tumor keeps coming back, and in the end Weiß decides against a fourth operation.

The Erding palliative care team referred Weiß to the palliative care ward in Wartenberg, where he was impressed by the love shown by the staff.

Weiß begins to collect donations and collects the 4,300 euros needed for a therapy device, which he bequeaths to the clinic through its circle of friends, a support association.

In the said Instagram video, Weiß then calls on politicians to ensure better working conditions in care.

"Care in Germany is in a miserable state," he says.

White would prefer to die at home, but the effort involved in caring for her becomes too great.

He spends some time in the hospice in Vilsbiburg.

But he still has one big wish: He wants to die in his home district, in the Erdinger Sophienhospice.

That's why he got in touch with manager Gabler more than half a year before it opened - and ended up becoming the first resident there.

"He was a very thoughtful person and I grew very fond of him," says Gabler about him.

Irene Hilf, also spokeswoman for the Wartenberg Clinic, has looked after Weiß as a hospice attendant since moving to Erding: "He was a special person, and I'm glad that he was relieved of his suffering and was able to walk well," she says.

Weiß fought for a long time, according to a study, just 14 percent survive the first two years after diagnosis.

With him it was almost three.

His family writes in the obituary: "You have enriched our lives forever - with your love, loyalty, reliability and commitment.

With your joy in nature and your interest in foreign cultures.

With your weakness for something special.

With your versatile knowledge.

With your persistence in solving problems.” And above all: “with your being you”.

The funeral service will take place on Saturday, August 13, at 12 p.m. in the Evangelical Free Church in Erding at Kletthamer Feld 24.

Mourning clothes should be avoided, that's what Weiss wanted.

And of course he asks again for donations (instead of flowers), this time for the ray of hope for the elderly.

"Death is not the most important thing, but the accompaniment there," Weiss once told our newspaper.

Today, Thursday, he would have been 63 years old.