PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) – In an odd twist of fate, the last conversation Nancy and Clyde Benedict would have with their son Steven touched on the issue of artificial life support.
Steven “Bucky” Benedict, who died this week after falling from a ladder, told his parents about someone he knew who’d been kept on life support for a prolonged period.
“He said, Mom don’t ever, ever let me go through that. When the time comes and I’m brain dead, let me go,”‘ said Nancy Benedict.
The next day, Benedict, 55, of Kittery, fell about 20 feet when his ladder apparently slipped out from under him. The ladder was propped on a porch roof.
Another painter attempted unsuccessfully to resuscitate Benedict after the accident. An ambulance took him to Portsmouth Regional Hospital where he was placed on life support. His parents were suddenly confronted with a bitter decision. With no hope of a recovery, they remembered their son’s words the night before and chose to discontinue the life support.
“He’s just the dearest person in the whole world,” Nancy said. “All I can say is he was a marvelous individual.”
Her son was very active in Alcoholics Anonymous, she said, and many people came to the hospital to see him in his last hours.
“He was never married, he just gave all of his last 25 years to helping people,” she said.
James Roberge, Benedict’s cousin, said he was “flabbergasted” by the number of people who showed up at the hospital after the accident.
“He helped countless people who were in crisis and wanted to turn their lives around,” he said, adding Benedict went through a tough battle to recover from dependency himself. He had not touched a drink in 16 years, Roberge said.
Benedict graduated from high school in New London and later attended Plymouth State University. An avid Red Sox fan, he later moved to Kittery, where he ran his own painting business. His parents live in Claremont but visited often.
According to police, the fall was reported shortly after 3 p.m. He was not conscious or breathing when police arrived at the scene.
A memorial service will be held at the Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Newington on Saturday.
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