We were deeply saddened to learn of the death today of Eva Thompson, a steadfast advocate for Death with Dignity legislation in her home state of Maine. She was 58.
During her four-year illness—she suffered from metastatic colon cancer—Eva worked with our partner organization in Maine, It’s My Death, to share her story and educate Mainers and Maine state lawmakers about assisted dying.
There is nothing I can do about the situation I’m in, but it would be a huge relief to know that I have some control over how the ending goes. I will know when I have suffered enough. It should be my choice to die quickly and painlessly when I decide the time is right.
She testified before the Maine Senate Health and Human Services Committee in April 2017 in support of LD 347, an Act to Support Death with Dignity. After the state Senate passed the bill and the House voted it down, Eva continued her advocacy, even as she knew she likely would not live to see Death with Dignity legalized in Maine.
An interfaith community minister, artist, green burial enthusiast, and proud grandmother, Eva remained active in her final months and always made clear that she wanted to live as long as she could.
“I have a happy life, I am not at all depressed; I want to be here,” Eva said in a 2017 video for Death with Dignity National Center. “If pain is being controlled, and if I still have independence, and my quality of life is still good, then I’ll keep fighting.”
For Eva, assisted dying was a matter of liberty. “For me it comes down to personal rights and freedom,” she said. “You might have views on this from a religious standpoint, from a political standpoint, but until you’re the person dying, I don’t think you can appreciate fully how important it is to have control over how the end goes.”
“The way Eva walked through this world was an inspiration to many,” said Valerie Lovelace, the founder and executive director of It’s My Death.
We will forever be grateful to Eva for her advocacy and her ability to articulate the importance of Death with Dignity with courage and grace.
As we prepare to launch a new phase of our campaign in Maine, we will carry her legacy forward and ensure that one day soon, terminally ill Mainers like Eva will have the right to decide how they die.
Eva Thompson (right) with Valerie Lovelace after the April 5, 2017 hearing on LD347 in Augusta, Maine.
2 Comments.
Marilyn
I will soon be diagnosed with salivatory cancer. They could not get enough cells in the double needle biopsy and have to do a 4 needle biopsy Thursday. I know of all the surgery’s radiation and possible chemotherapy they want to do. I saw my father die 5 years with this and it was horrible. It won’t be cured and at what a price to be paid. I am not depressed but I am not a young person. I don’t know if there is anyway I have control over my death as Ohio has never passed death with dignity. Any suggestions?
Peter Korchnak, Death with Dignity
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