Bob Kallberg

About half-way through Joanie’s twelve-year battle with cancer, Joanie suggested her husband, caregiver, and love of her life, Bob Kallberg, write some columns about what he had learned being a caregiver to someone who was facing a serious disease. That was the beginning. Kallberg, a former columnist, soon realized that he couldn’t just write about the lessons learned without telling how he came to learn them, and over time it became Joanie’s story, Where the Popsicles Are. In the telling of Joanie’s story, Kallberg made an effort to show that while there were some very dark times, there were many times that were filled with light and joy. Joanie was the source of that light. She handled it all—the good times, the dark times, the ups and the downs of those twelve years with such great class and dignity, and never once heard her say, “Why me?”

“I’m in awe of it to this day. This is her story. – Bob Kallberg