WHO WE ARE
This website is presented by William (Bill) Simmons, a California attorney.
Several years ago Bill became interested in end-of-life issues because, as a lawyer, he thought everyone needed an advance health care directive (living will with durable power of attorney). He quickly learned that legal directives are not the most important. What are important are family discussions, hopefully preceded by some thinking and preparation, as set forth in the planning section of this website.
Bill has been a patient volunteer with San Diego Hospice and Scripps Hospital Hospice. The advance health care directive was prepared for and in conjunction with San Diego Hospice, before its demise in 2012. The material here is strictly his own, based on extensive reading and conversations with doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals.
Bill obtained a B.A. in music composition from Grinnell College, Grinnell Iowa (1958), and a J.D. from Hastings College of Law, San Francisco, California (1964). In the 1970s he was the director of the California agency limiting smog from vehicles. In the 1980s and 90s he was a real estate broker with 70 agents. He used to backpack in the Sierra Nevada and now enjoys hiking the 40 trails in his San Diego community.
Pat Fisher, dr. internet, helped with technical and substantive issues in this website. As a teenager, she was moved by the Karen Ann Quinlan case in 1975. Viewing images of this young girl, immobile, hooked up to devices and tubes keeping her artificially “alive” in her persistent vegetative state was disturbing.
Pat was appalled by the legal battle that ensued when her parents wanted to disconnect the ventilator and leave Karen in a natural state to die a natural death. The state fought Karen’s parents’ wishes, causing them additional grief.
Pat distinctly recalls the “experts” saying that Karen would die if the ventilator was removed. When her parents finally prevailed in the New Jersey Supreme Court and the ventilator was removed, Karen lived for another nine years in a nursing home.
Pat has been an ardent believer in the right to die since that time.
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Bill receives no remuneration from this website. His desire is to distribute information as widely as possible, so that people understand their options when it comes to dying today and do the planning for the end of their lives.
His directive form is not copyrighted. If you publish or distribute his form or writings, attribution to Bill and FinalExodus.org will be appreciated.