A visit from an old friend (9-19-25)

During what would be my wife’s final hospital stay, he was there for us.

Everyone should have such a friend. Count yourself fortunate if you do. So, I would like for you to meet Eddie Woods.

Dorinda and I were at UAB’s Women and Infants Center in Birmingham. We were there for 10 days in April, a time when we would eventually learn Dorinda’s cancer had spread to her lungs. She underwent so many tests and procedures, many of which were very painful. I didn’t leave her.

With most of our family members and friends either two hours to the north in the Shoals area or a couple hours south around Montgomery, it was difficult and lonely. Certainly, there were phone calls and texts. Facebook messages from those letting Dorinda know they were thinking of her and praying. Dorinda read each message and responded when she could. All of the thoughts and prayers were appreciated.

But actions matter, too.

Living just north of Birmingham, Eddie was the friend closest to us at UAB. And he was there.

Two different nights he brought us dinner and just sat and talked and laughed with us for hours as we shared stories of our friendship that spans more than four decades. Goodness, it was so good to see her laugh. And to see her smile.

How I miss my Bear’s smile.

Eddie brought wings one night and pizza another. After eating hospital food for days, well, you can imagine. And no charge.

Another evening, he made a run to pick up a prescription for me that I had transferred to a Birmingham drug store. It is the one medication I depend on the most to help with leg problems and my mobility. Again, no charge.

How can you repay someone for something like that? I tried by inviting Eddie and his wife, Mary Ann, to stay with me in Gulf Shores whenever possible. They did so during the Labor Day weekend. More on that weekend a little later on, but first some more about Eddie.

We go back many years, to 1980 as a matter of fact. We met in high school. I was at a new school and didn’t know anyone. Eddie was among the first to introduce himself. And at 6-3, he was also one of the best players on what turned out to be a pretty good basketball team a couple years later.

Our mutual interest in sports helped shape connections with my new friends. We played baseball together. We would make several quick trips together to Atlanta to see the Braves play over the years. There was Alabama football. College basketball. The bond lasted with several of those friends, especially with Eddie. It lasted through college. And in December of 1986, he was in our wedding.

We moved on with our lives, our own families, and living in different parts of the South. But we have remained in close contact. We’ve both lost our parents over the years, and another close friend to cancer that we still can’t believe.

There have been calls here and there about the Braves’ young prospects, seasons good and bad. And to celebrate that World Series championship in 2021.

Music bound us as well. Van Halen and Stevie Nicks rank near the top of the list for each of us. And in 2019, Eddie and his son, Brodie, went with me and Dorinda to see the Rolling Stones in Jacksonville, Florida. A fun night.

Speaking of Brodie, Eddie and his wife became all too familiar with UAB when their son had a truck accident on a rain-slickened road in the fall of 2022. He wound up staying at UAB for more than a month and has undergone more than a dozen surgeries on his left arm. They know about extended hospital stays.

As I’ve written here, I wound up losing Dorinda on the evening of April 25 following a 16-month fight against cancer.

A week or so later, Eddie wanted to go with me to a Braves game as a way to get away from everything. We did just that, even though both of us moved much slower than we did all those years ago, me with my leg issues and Eddie with his knees. But we made sure the other didn’t fall.

And then came Labor Day weekend. We enjoyed our time together and hopefully they will visit again soon. I took Eddie and Mary Ann to some of the new places I’ve discovered here – the Cove Bar and Grill and Bahama Bob’s Beach Side Cafe, both in Gulf Shores. We enjoyed music by Les Linton on the waterfront at the Tiki & Raw Bar in Orange Beach (more on Les in an upcoming column). And of course, there were a couple evenings enjoying the beach.

But no doubt, the early mornings were the best part of Eddie’s visit. Just sitting on the balcony drinking coffee and reminiscing. Sharing a laugh. And a tear.

And talking about Dorinda. At times it seemed like she was almost there with us, too, smiling and laughing.

And Eddie was there for us back in April.

Everyone should have such a friend.                                                                                                                                                      

Eddie and his wife, Mary Ann, outside Bahama Bob’s Beach Side Cafe with the author on Sept. 1.

The author with his friend at an Atlanta Braves game in May.