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It's not a subject most like to think about, but it's something that will happen, eventually -- we will die. But we may have a chance, in our last moments, to look back on our lives and examine if we've "invested" our time well. This 5-part series examines the "ultimate balance statement." Five terminally ill people share reflections on whether they've managed to strike a balance between making money and spending quality time with those that make life worth living.
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May 17,
2002 - Sister Jean Marie Newman May 16,
2002 - Ross P.Wallace May 15,
2002 - Wendie Jo Sperber May 14,
2002 - Carl Abate May 13,
2002 - Robert Dasmann
He is suffering from an incurable form of abdominal cancer and was referred by Chaplain Gordon Van Enk, VITAS Hospice Health Care Corporation, Torrance, Calif., 800-966-7757.
Music selections in the order they were played: The theme from the original soundrack of the movie "Traffic" by Cliff Martinez; "The Perfect Candidate" by Michael Penn from "Mp4-Days Since a Lost Time Acc;" "Exit Music (For a Film)" by Brad Mehldau from "Vol. 3-Songs;" "Bola" by Jorge Strunz and Ardeshir Farah from "A World Instrumental Collection;" "Beautiful Struggle" by The Borrowers.
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Sister Jean Marie Newman was 88 years old when she died on August 3, 2001, of kidney failure. Since the age of 15, she dreamed of working as a Catholic missionary in foreign lands so that should teach little children about God. Though she never became a missionary, she trained as a nun and as a teacher, and had a real thirst for learning. She never regretted her decision to give up the chance of having her own family because she said she found love and companionship in the family of the church.
She lived in Milwaukee, Wis., and was cared for by the Milwaukee Hospice Residence, part of the Visiting Nurse Association of Wisconsin. Contact: Jim Trowbridge, 414-659-0324, 
Ross P.Wallace, 79, is living in San Antonio, Texas. He's a former Navy pilot, radio personality, supervisor for Pepsi-Cola International, and an entrepreneur. His work frequently required him to leave his wife and six children for long stretches at a time so that he could travel to Asia and other spots around the world. It was a sacrifice he felt he had to make to support his family. He is especially proud of the time he spent developing his own business, in which he would run training workshops for managers and business people in different places around the country.
His wife has since passed away, but many of his children live nearby in San Antonio. Wallace is threatened by a coronary aneurysm that could rupture at any time. He is cared for by the Visiting Nurse Association of South Texas. Contact: Ginger Cave, 210-804-5200, 800-773-7292.
Music selections in the order they were played: "Old Man River" from "Showboat;" "Lonestar Rag" by Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys from "Volume 1-Tiffany Transcriptions;" "Roll with it" by Ani Difranco from "Like I Said;" "Sentimental Serenade" by Brad Gordon; "Requiem," composed and performed by San Antonio-based Flamenco artist George Champion.
Wendie Jo Sperber is 38 years old and the director and founder of weSpark, a free support center for cancer patients in Sherman Oaks, Calif. She started the center after her first encounter with breast cancer to "give back" something to the community. Through a series of fundraising initiatives, Sperber raised enough money to launch the center, and now hopes to see other centers like it get started.
Wendie Jo started acting professionally when she was only 16 years old. She has appeared in films like the "Back to the Future" trilogy, "1941," "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" and "Used Cars." Her television credits include, "Babes," "Hearts of Fire," "Bosom Buddies," "Private Benjamin" and "Women in Prison," and a series of theater performances. She has balanced her career with raising two teenage children as a single mom. She now is using medical and spiritual therapies to live with her Stage-4 breast cancer. 
Carl Abate was 73 years old when he died on September 2, 2001, of end-stage heart disease. An Italian-American, he lived in the same neighborhood in East Boston all his life where he reached local athletic stardom in track and football competitions. Though he worked long hours as an insurance supervisor, he was a devoted father and was committed to promoting athletics in his community. He served on the East Boston Athletic Board for 43 years and was president of the Board's scholarship committee for 35 years. This committee handed out scholarship gifts of $1,500 to kids from his neighborhood to give them a good start in athletics. Carl is survived by his wife, Mary, and three children.
Five heart attacks had left him bedridden. He was cared for by Joy Swader of Health Care Dimensions, Waltham, Mass., 781-255-1848, 
Robert Dasmann, 54, is recently retired and living in Arroyo Grande, Calif., with his wife. His two children live nearby. After training as a marine, he worked for 32 years in law enforcement, both as a police officer and as a narcotics intelligence supervisor in Los Angeles County. He helped create a "war room" there that coordinated the law enforcement activities of agents working in many regions of California, which now serves as a model to other states and countries. He still serves as a consultant to the Los Angeles County Regional Criminal Information Clearinghouse.
