Schiavo Speaks at the Ronald Cranford Conference

The conference is one of the most important ones in the history of bioethics, because it celebrates the life and work of Ronald Cranford, who has meant as much as anyone to the debate about end-of-life decisionmaking. The Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune covered the guest most in the media were there to here: Michael Schiavo, who for the first time shared his side of the ordeal:

"All I wanted to do was carry out my wife's wishes." Wiping away tears, Schiavo spoke softly. "I'm not a public speaker, as you all know," he said. "You didn't see much of me. All I can do right now is be myself, and tell you how I feel."

Schiavo tried to stay out of the spotlight when the story became front-page news last winter. At the time, he said, he was denounced by the president, Congress, the pope, the Rev. Jesse Jackson "and even Mel Gibson." Eventually, the courts ruled that the feeding tube could be removed, over her parents' objection, and Terri Schiavo, 41, died in a Florida hospice March 31.

"I want everybody to know the day Terri died, she was so peaceful," Schiavo said. "Terri didn't die an awful death." He said he held her in his arms as she slipped away. "I laid a red rose in her hand and said goodbye."