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Preparing for the end

by Jessica Seifert
Russell Hargan, 76, is a woodworker by craft and a farmer by trade. Twenty-two years ago, Hargan was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Russell is now forced to rely on the support of others, such as his wife Alta, to complete tasks he used to do alone. His shaky hands are not the precise tools they once were.

Ten years ago, Russell Hargan began to assemble the frames of the caskets that will eventually hold him and his wife.

This is the woodworker’s last project.

Russell was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease 22 years ago. The illness attacks the central nervous system and impairs motor skills.

Parkinson’s disease has taken away Russell’s ability to practice and perfect his craft independently. He can’t make precise measurements, use a handsaw or turn a bolt. He relies on his wife, Alta, to help lift boards and cut wood. Corners don’t meet as neatly as before.

It took about five years for Russell to complete his own casket. Since the casket’s completion, Russell has asked more than 100 family members and friends to sign its bed and drive a nail into his final resting place. He still works on his wife’s casket when his body allows.

But Russell maintains a joyous sense of humor. Alta remembers when a local reporter asked her husband why he made his coffin now.

“When I need it,” he replied, smiling, “it’s too late to build it then.”

Russell Hargan works on his farm every day to keep things in order. Even though Parkinson's disease has taken away a lot of Russell's motor skills, it hasn't changed his desire to maintain his farm.
Russell Hargan feeds his cattle every afternoon. As Parkinson's disease takes its toll his body, he depends more on his John Deere Gator to get around his property and care for his farm animals.
Russell Hargan, right, has made major changes in his life since he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease 22 years ago. He would be living in a nursing home if not for his neurosurgeon, Dr. Thad Jackson of Hardin Memorial Hospital, said Russell's wife, Alta.
Alta Hargan shaves her husband, Russell, daily as part of their morning ritual in Vine Grove. "I've got my nurse built in," Russell said. Her husband, a woodworker diagnosed with Parkinson's disease 22 years ago, would be in a nursing home now if not for his doctor, Alta said.
Despite being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease 22 years ago, Russell Hargan, 76, is still involved in woodworking. His current project is finishing his wife, Alta's, casket.
Russell Hargan's last big project as he succumbs to Parkinson's disease is making two caskets, one for himself and one for his wife. He began the project nearly 10 years ago. He has finished his own casket and is almost finished with his wife's.
Hugh Cross, a close church friend of Russell and Alta Hargan, comes over to help the couple with daily chores that have become difficult for them to manage. Hugh helps Russell clean out his once-pristine workroom, which is now covered with cobwebs and sawdust.
Russell Hargan leaves his dusty work room where he once spent hours building everything from a rocking horse for his grandchildren to furniture for his home, to his very own coffin. The room that was once clean and orderly is now covered in sawdust, clutter and cobwebs.