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When nobody called this dying Army veteran, his wife put out a heartbreaking plea

Lee Hernandez, an Army veteran in hospice care with a terminal illness, has received an outpouring of support after his wife's simple plea.
/ Source: TODAY

An Army veteran in hospice care with a terminal illness asked his wife recently to hold his phone for him in case anyone calls.

After no one called for two hours, Lee Hernandez, 47, told his wife, Ernestine, "I guess no one wants to talk to me."

"It broke my heart,'' Ernestine told The Arizona Republic. “(Lee’s) speech is not very well, so many people didn’t take much interest or want to talk to him.”

To help cheer up Lee, Ernestine is asking people to give him a call or send him a text because it helps to lift his spirits.

She first put the message out on Tuesday to the Arizona Veterans Forum on Facebook, which asked fellow veterans to help brighten Lee's day with a simple gesture. He soon was receiving an outpouring of prayers, phone calls and uplifting text messages that Ernestine read to him.

Lee has gone blind and suffers from continuous strokes despite three brain surgeries from an illness doctors have been unable to determine, she told The Arizona Republic. The 18-year Army veteran, who served in Iraq, has been in hospice care at their home in New Braunfels, Texas.

Ernestine suggests those who want to call or text should do so between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. Central Daylight Time at 210-632-6778.

"Thank you everyone for your calls and support,'' she told The Arizona Republic. "I am trying to give him the best life I am able to with the help of my mom."

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