Goodbye, Pat

~ Jason Schwartz

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Today we say goodbye to Pat Gibbons.

The post I wrote last week was the most viewed post ever on this blog and it was shared on facebook more than 1000 times.

Here’s the thing. Pat was incredibly generous, compassionate and a pretty amazing vector of hope. Thousands of people are immeasurably better off (great jobs, great lives and helping others) because of him. Pat found room for this generosity within a life that included 6 children. 3 of them are still school aged. Pat took good care of them. They’ll be OK. But, it won’t be easy.

Some friends have started a fundraising page to help his youngest with their education.

If everyone who shared last week’s post about Pat gave just $10, that would be over $10,000 to make the next several years a little easier.

If you’re one of those people who have a great job and a great life, this is your chance to repay a little of his generosity.

Please consider giving.

Published by Jason Schwartz

I have been an addiction professional and social worker since 1994. I started blogging in 2005 as the Clinical Director at Dawn Farm. I no longer work at Dawn Farm and am now the Director of Behavioral Medicine at a community hospital, and a lecturer at Eastern Michigan University’s School of Social Work. Views expressed here are my own. Keep in mind that the field, the contexts in which the field operates, and my views have changed over time.