AP’s Josh Funk wrote a powerful piece on a Marler Clark client and family struggling with the loss of a husband and father in “Neb. family hopes changes follow listeria outbreak.” The whole article is worth a read, but there are several poignant parts:

The family of the 81-year-old Nebraska man who died last month after eating tainted cantaloupe hopes the listeria outbreak leads to improvements in food safety.

George Drinkwalter’s relatives hope no other family will have to endure what they have in the past month. They say the Cody, Neb., man’s life was cut short because of the fruit he chose to eat for breakfast.

“It was hard to watch him die the way he did die,” Randy Drinkwalter, of North Platte, one of George’s four sons, told The Associated Press in an interview Monday.

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Isla Drinkwalter, who just celebrated her 58th wedding anniversary in August, said her husband was a well-liked, kind man who valued family and always supported the local schools. The couple met after he served in the Army in Germany during the Korean War.

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The Drinkwalter family hasn’t decided yet whether file a lawsuit against the cantaloupe producer and distributors. Family members hope that telling their story might help lead to a safer food production system, and maybe more consumers will be inspired to take precautions such as washing fruits and vegetables and cooking meat thoroughly.

“If we could prevent one other family from going through what we have, it will be worth it,” Keith Drinkwalter said.

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AP’s Dan Elliott did the same for five other Marler Clark clients in “For Listeria victims, sudden turns for the worse” a few days ago.