Former Wisconsin Governor Marty Schreiber On The Two Loves of His Life And The Disease That Transformed Them Both
Marty Schreiber, former governor of Wisconsin, and his late wife, Elaine, fell in love as teenagers and spent nearly 70 beautiful years together before he lost her to Alzheimer's disease in April this year. In a new TODAY Show interview, Schreiber sat down with Maria to discuss his new book, My Two Elaines, in which he shares his incredible love story and his 19-year caregiving journey to help others who might be navigating a similar experience.
Describing the first Elaine as his wife as he had always known her and the second Elaine as his wife who battled Alzheimer's disease, he said, "I had to let go of the first Elaine so I could embrace the second Elaine and help her."
Schreiber spoke about the grieving process that happens when caregiving, finding moments of joy when dealing with a heartbreaking diagnosis, and how caring for his late wife evolved his definition of manhood for himself.
"Many times, if we fall in love, we only have a chance to really, truly love one person," Schreiber told Maria. "I had a chance to love and be with two people."
We encourage you to watch the heartwarming interview below as we recognize November as Alzheimer's Awareness Month and National Family Caregivers Month.
Question from the Editor: Do you have any experiences caring for a loved one that you would like to share or know another endearing story of caregiving?
