Frank Keat had spent the majority of his life working with horses. For over 65 years, he spent time at the stables and worked with those wonderful animals one on one. Now that he is older, he has one wish in life before he passes on, and that is to say goodbye to his beloved horse. Unfortunately… He is already confined to a hospital.
Mr. Keat’s health did not allow him to be transported the stable. He had been battling with cancer and he only had a limited amount of time left to live. That is when the staff at Bodmin Hospital in Cornwall, England did something absolutely phenomenal. They told him that he would get a visit from his old friend and that it would occur before it was too late.
October 23 started like any other day at the hospital. Mr. Keat was wheeled out to the hospital patio, but what waited for him on the patio is absolutely amazing. His prized five-year-old horse, Early Morn, was waiting on the patio for him and it was a total surprise that was set up by the nurses at the hospital!
After being able to say goodbye to his wonderful horse, Mr. Keat died just three days later. He was 80 years old.
His son, Tim said…
“It was a really nice last gift and I was so delighted it happened. It was a wonderful gesture by the nurses to arrange for his horse to visit him like that. I want to thank all the staff on the ward for what they did, because I know my dad couldn’t have wished for anything better.”
During the time that Mr. Keat stayed at the hospital, he would often tell stories to the staff about his career and dealing with the horses. It is no surprise, therefore, that many tears were shed on the patio that day.
Nurse Samantha Russell said…
“I can honestly say that this is the most memorable day of my career. The emotion was overwhelming and there wasn’t a dry eye on the ward.”
Frank Keat started working with horses when he was only 15 years old. As he got older, he began to breed horses and eventually, traveled around England to equestrian competitions, serving as a judge.
His horse, Early Morn is a thoroughbred hunter and was named personally by Mr. Keat. The reunion that day left Frank overwhelmed and speechless, as we can well imagine.