Boulder, Colorado — Shannon Bennett felt “speechless” when she received a text from her 82-year-old mother, Gayle Hamer, in February 2025: “Please don’t get angry or upset, but I am so tired of my life. Could you please look into assisted suicide for me?”
Hamer, diagnosed with esophageal cancer eight years ago, had endured lingering symptoms, including dizziness, loss of appetite, and the inability to enjoy hobbies like reading or knitting.
Over the past year, doctors confirmed that Hamer’s cancer was terminal. She experienced significant limitations in her daily life, struggling with activities she once enjoyed, such as reading and knitting, and often lacked appetite despite a lifelong love of food.
Her daughter initially hesitated when she received the message, describing herself as “speechless” and uncertain how to respond. However, she soon realized that the request was not about despair but about her mother’s determination to maintain dignity and control.
Hamer opted for Medical Aid in Dying (MAID), legal in Colorado since 2016 under the End-of-Life Options Act. The law allows terminally ill patients to self-administer prescribed medication to end their lives. Hamer’s decision reflected her desire to avoid prolonged suffering while maintaining autonomy.
Colorado requires strict safeguards before patients can access MAID. These include being at least 18 years old, having a prognosis of six months or less to live, making two verbal requests separated by at least 15 days, and submitting a written request with witnesses. Two physicians must confirm eligibility. Hamer met all these criteria, and her daughter supported her through the process.
In euthanasia, a physician actively administers a life-ending intervention to relieve a patient’s suffering. In contrast, MAID generally refers to situations where the physician provides the patient with the means—such as prescribed medication—to end their own life, allowing the patient to retain control over the timing and method. 1
Both practices raise complex ethical and legal questions, including balancing respect for autonomy and self-determination with the constitutional right to life, while also considering the impact on the doctor–patient relationship and the principle of “do no harm.”
On March 20, 2025, Hamer ended her life using the prescribed medication, with her children present by her side.
Before her passing, she expressed her deep gratitude for her family, she recalled that her children have been beyond the call; they are truly wonderful.
Her daughter shared that while it was heartbreaking, she respected her mother’s decision and found peace in knowing that Hamer passed on her own terms. “She wasn’t scared — she was ready. That gave us all a strange kind of comfort,” Bennett said.
She remembered that her grandchildren are equally remarkable, and she was so grateful to have them as her children and grandchildren.
"I cannot express enough how much I love my family,” she gushed.
Reference
1. Fontalis, Andreas, Efthymia Prousali, and Kunal Kulkarni. "Euthanasia and Assisted Dying: What Is the Current Position and What Are the Key Arguments Informing the Debate?" Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 111, no. 11 (November 2018): 407–413. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6243437/
(Rh/Eth/ARC/MSM)