I want to tell you a story about my best friend, who died May 27, 2009. I promised myself that I would tell this story over and over tell someone acknowledges my letters.

On May 27, 2009, at 8:30, I received a call from my best friend and she told me she was having problems breathing. I told her to call 911 and she told me she did not want to, but to go to her home and pick up her room mate, Mark.

I rushed over to her house and found she was not there, but was on the phone again and wanted us to meet her some where on Highway 16 (Yolo County) I must admit that I thought, well, maybe it is not really all that bad if she didn’t want to call 911.

I went home and put on clothes and shoes, combed my hair, etc. Went back to her home, picked up Mark and he said, “She wants us to meet her at Cache Creek Gas Station across from the casino on Rt. 16.” I told her room mate that it was a 50-mile drive and it would take at least an hour or more, and we were on our way.

Bonnie had went to the Bay Area to visit a friend and her daughter met them as well. She was on her way back from this visit when all this happened.

When we got to her there were firemen and police everywhere. We told the police that we were here to pick her up, but we could see she was receiving CPR. Police told us that the firemen had to break the window to her truck to get her out. I asked how was she and they said she was in critical condition. Her roommate and I went to the hospital (which took thirty minutes) and gave as much medical information as we could.

Then, just what we didn’t want to hear – “I’m sorry, but your friend Bonnie has passed away.” The doctor came out and talked to us and said they did all they could and so did the firemen, but she had probably died when they got her out of the truck, but still had some signs of life.

She was 62 years old and would have been 63 on Sept. 11. You see, she didn’t want to call 911 because she had no medical and she sought out her friends to help instead because of the expense of the emergency room. The cost could vary from $800 to $1,00 and that cost Bonnie her life. A few more years and she would have had Medicare!

These are the stories that are happening to the pre-elderly and the elderly and may others. We live in a country that people do not care about us any more, and that is more than sad.

In the real world where we (the people) live the system is just falling apart. I have Medical and I have had my check cut twice and I guess we shouldn’t have help for our eyes and teeth, they have cut that out for us too. I’m a diabetic, and where do I do?

Renee Griffin lives in Clearlake.