When Gene was diagnosed with melanoma, he had only been given six weeks left to live. It was a shocking diagnosis but Gene decided to use the time he had left to make all the necessary arrangements for his wife Carol, with whom he had been married for 30 years. He cashed out his pension and used the money to pay off the house they were living in. The second step was to arrange a trip for his wife Carol and the rest of the family to Italy. When they visited a specific church in Venice, a priest was already waiting for the couple. It was in this church that Gene's parents had married more than 50 years ago. At that day, Gene and Carol renewed their wedding vows and had the most beautiful day.
After Gene had died, his wife Carol discovered that he hid hundreds of Post-it notes around the entire house, shortly before he died. Throughout the course of many months, she found one note after another. The notes are beautiful and very personal statements meant to encourage Carol in this difficult time. But Gene also reminded his wife in these statements to fully enjoy every aspect of life, to sell his car and to move on with her life. It was the most heartwarming farewell gift one could ever imagine.