Richard Owens,
a longtime Rollins College professor and former general manager of Orlando Opera, dies while traveling in Germany. He was 86.
Susie Plakon, wife of State Rep. Scott Plakon (R-Longwood), died Monday from disease-related complications of Alzheimer’s disease.
Plakon confirmed the news in a Facebook post Monday afternoon. “Susie Rushing Plakon, my beloved wife of 33 years, has just stepped into eternity while in my arms and surrounded by her loving family,” Plakon posted. “She will now be forever with Jesus, the One she loved even more than me or life itself.”
Plakon’s family members posted a heartbreaking picture on Facebook of Susie’s final hours in the embrace of her husband.
Susie Plakon, 57, had been in hospice care at home for several weeks. She was diagnosed with Stage 7 of Alzheimer’s, the last stage in the disease’s slow descent.
Since his wife’s diagnosis in 2012, Plakon has become an ally for victims and caregivers of a disease that affects an estimated 5.5 million Americans. He used social media to openly share his pain, while also using his legislative clout in Tallahassee to push for more research in hopes of finding a cure.
Alzheimer’s advocates have designated that person “The First Survivor.”
Plakon helped defeat a push to defund about half of 15 authorized memory disorder centers in the state, thanks to a bipartisan push.
And during the 2017 legislative session, he co-sponsored a bill that allowed Florida Hospital to establish the 16th memory disorder center in Florida, this one based in Winter Park.
“When things happen, you wonder what’s [God’s] purpose is in all of this,” Plakon told me last week. “What’s going on here? And all the good things that have happened with the funding I’ve been able to get, speaking at the Alzheimer’s Association convention, the memory center, Alzheimer’s month, all of this stuff that we’ve been able to do. That’s Susie inspired.”
A Celebration of Susie’s Life will be held 3:30 p.m. Sunday at Church in the Son, 4484 N. John Young Parkway in Orlando. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association.