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What motivated Jo Myers to help other baby boomers survive the deaths of their elders?
Jo and Daryl Hammond
Before she wrote Good to Go, Jo enjoyed a successful 30-year career as a radio personality in Nashville, Atlanta, Cincinnati, South Florida, and Denver.
She has interviewed rock stars and celebrities including Robert Plant, Lou Dobbs, Lou Diamond Philips, Alice Cooper, Sandra Bullock, Daryl Hammond, Bart Simpson, John Ritter, Richard Simmons, Ted Nugent, Tom Selleck, Sylvester Stallone, Simon Cowell, Tommy Chong, Freddie Prinze, Jr., and Oprah’s boyfriend, just to name an odd list of a few. Little did Jo know that through these experiences, she would be gearing up to interview a bevy of equally important (if not as well-known) people for her book.
Jo Myers has been around.
Jo in the cemetery in Isla Mujeres, Mexico.
And she has been through it—the deaths of her parents and other aged loved ones. Jo has much to say about what she has learned, and she has written it down in her book, Good to Go.
It all surely started with a genetic imprint: Jo’s grandfather was an undertaker. She grew up hearing stories about the family-owned funeral home and the seeds of interest were planted as Jo came of age in the South. Like most other baby boomers, Jo was born and raised in the “yes ma’am-no sir, respect-your-elders” era—the third daughter of four children with married parents (working father, stay-at-home mom). Theirs was a tight family unit.
As a young woman, Jo developed an affinity for visiting cemeteries, and taught her sons subtraction by computing ages from year dates on headstones. When her kids eventually refused to accompany her (they also swore off going with her to yard sales), Jo was undaunted and traipsed through graveyards by herself in places as far away as Slovenia and as close as her own backyard. Jo has lived by a cemetery for many years—a daily reminder of mortality with an almost-daily display of options available for graveside services.
For several years, Jo was part of a volunteer group that visited elderly shut-ins and nursing home residents. During that time, her circle of friends expanded to include many octogenarians—some without family nearby. Others had no family at all, and lived only for visits from someone who cared.
The passing of Jo Myers’ elders made an impression.
Jo Myers and the Mama’s Boys
After her mother’s death, Jo was moved to assemble a performance band called Jo Myers and the Mama’s Boys. Audiences were treated to her special brand of standards from the 30’s and 40’s, and did not seem to mind when Jo perverted the lyrics as she sang My Buddy in pig Latin and used props like a boxing nun puppet, a bullwhip, and a giant pacifier (You Must’ve Been a Beautiful Baby). Many actually laughed with gusto and applauded enthusiastically, especially when Jo handed out dollars bills from the stage in return for the accolades. Jo’s mom would possibly have been proud!
Jo’s dad had been a widower for 11 years when he died unexpectedly, and that’s when the family began pulling apart. Months after her father’s death, Jo took a leave of absence from radio and traveled to her childhood home to help get it ready for sale. Communication with her siblings was awkward, at best; and it became painfully obvious that more specific end-of-life planning could help keep survivors together . . . after the parent’s are gone.
Within the following two years, Jo’s childless, 90-year-old aunt died—a seemingly “so what?” kind of event, but one that, nonetheless, sent shockwaves through and dropped posthumous bombs on Jo’s family. In the same time frame, one of Jo’s longtime friends (age 78) was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and Jo helped make it possible for her friend to cross over, according to carefully-made plans.
Based on the experiences and consequences of the deaths of her elders, Jo deduced that at least one person in four might not be Good to Go, so she left radio to see what she could do about it.
Jo Myers quit her job.
Actually, first, she told her husband she wanted to quit her job. It was after she revived him and helped him up off the floor where he fell when he fainted that she quit her job. Jo stopped talking about Britney Spears and other stuff she didn’t want to talk about; and started writing about stuff most people might avoid talking about, but would maybe read about if it were presented in a straightforward and interesting manner.
Jo went from interviewing rock stars, actors, comics, and newsmakers to interviewing death care industry professionals and any other experts who would give her the time of day.
Jo talked to lawyers, caregiving executives, obituary and eulogy writers, hospice care representatives, real estate agents, body and tissue donation people, medical experts, emergency responders, and engaged her therapist to rehash the counseling she received after her father died. A psychiatrist gave his take on the dynamics of sibling relationships.
E-mails were exchanged with jewelers who provided information about appraisals and the sale of personal jewelry. An estate sale company owner gave Jo the lowdown on estate sales. A banker contributed interesting details about signature cards and safe-deposit boxes.
A ladies’ Sunday School Class provided tips for visiting a family in mourning. Veterinarians sounded off about pet owners who want to take their animals with them when they “go.” A medium expressed her opinions about what happens when a person transitions.
Jo found a seasoned cop with a no-holds-barred approach to explain some things. This guy gave up the goods about why a body shouldn’t be moved, great and awful hiding places for valuables, theft of services—in general, how police might react to certain situations put forth in the personal narrative of Jo’s book.
She looked up a long-lost cousin who had worked for their undertaker grandpa as a teenager and got more material for her book. She remembered some stories herself and jotted them down. Jo Myers wrote Good to Go so that people could know about the importance of pre-planning for the inevitable and understand the possible consequences if they do not pre-plan for death.
Good to Go was completed in the summer of 2007. Now available in paperback, baby boomers everywhere are reading it, and learning how to get their parents and themselves. . . good to go.