High Sierra Topix

Hi Lilbitmo,

Welcome to HST! Thank you very much for posting this very fitting photo of Pat!

The "Celebration of Life" Information is as follows

Updated info due to the parking and construction issues at the school.

Please note the revised time schedule.

Sorry for any inconvenience.

Celebration of Life Memorial Service
Pat Hadley
September 28, 1958 – August 22, 2013

Please join us in celebrating her amazing life.
Valencia High School Gymnasium
Friday August 30, 2013
500 Bradford Ave. Placentia, CA 92870
Doors will be open at 1:00 for anyone who wants to browse the dozens of photo albums and other mementos of her life. There will be plenty of room and lots of seating. We’ll open the floor for sharing memories at 3:30 p.m. starting with her VHS family and then guests are encouraged to share their memories and experiences.

lilbitmo
Thanks for posting the info about the memorial service. Was just going to do that myself.
I plan on participating and hope to see many others from the hiking/climbing community there.

I saw this online the other day and am so sorry to hear. Sending positive vibes to her family and friends.

For those interested in the details, here is Bob Burd's account of the fateful day of August 22, 2013. In Bob's words: "Everyone has a right to learn from such tragedies and ask what could be done to prevent similar ones in the future."
http://www.snwburd.com/bob/trip_reports ... rth_1.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I'll be attending the memorial scheduled for today and will pay my respects to Pat at that time.

Orbitor,

PM sent.

This tribute video was shown at the memorial service and made it hard to hold back tears. Please watch and let us always remember the incredible person Pat was.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=732876686741975" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

orbitor,

I am so sorry for your loss. Pat was one of us who belongs in the mountains and I did have tears out of my eyes after the video. My condolence to the family and friends.
Don

Finally got around to uploading the photos I took at the memorial on August 30. Please see them here:
http://orbitor.smugmug.com/Friends/Pat- ... orial-2013" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
(Unfortunately, that Friday turned out to a really busy one and I forgot to grab an actual camera when I left my house in the morning, so all I had was my phone's camera. The lighting was rather poor too, which resulted in some shots being yellow-er than usual)

A few notes:
It turned out to be an extremely hot late summer day in Placentia. The memorial was held in the Valencia High gym, an older building with no air conditioning or adequate ventilation. The presence of a few hundred people combined with the high temps turned the place into a veritable sauna. Despite this, the event succeeded as a celebration of Pat's life; she would not have wanted us to be sad or dejected, but instead remember all the wonderful times we spent together and be appreciative of the difference we can make in anyone's life if we believe in them. Still, looking around at the huge turnout and perusing the incredible collection of photos documenting her life, it was hard not to be overwhelmed by the tremendous loss. A relatively small number of climbers congregated and we spent most of the time in each others' company, recounting our memories with Pat. After some official tributes, the microphone was opened to anyone who wanted to speak. Students, parents, fellow teachers, family members, friends and a couple of hikers walked up and shared their stories. The event ended with a moving video that brought almost everyone to tears. Before leaving, I sought out Bob Hadley, gave him a few hugs and told him we stand with him. He was overwhelmed by everything, but deeply appreciative of all the support. A very emotional day that I hope to not have to experience again anytime soon.

Hi Mihai,

Thanks for updating us on Pat's memorial. Through your posts and links, folks like me who never met her learned about a truly inspirational and remarkable woman that we wished we had had the pleasure of meeting. I suspect many like me, in following the posts and threads, have had their eyes moisten as they followed this story.

This story has cast a big pall over the peak bagging community and emotionally affected so many who never met Pat. I was just having a conversation with one of my students yesterday afternoon, and the subject came up. This student is one of our few (even in a geology department) who is an avid peak bagger. We talked about what a tragic summer this has been in the Sierra, about Pat's death, and also one of the points in common of many of the accidents: class 3 on metamorphic rocks. We all know what makes this dangerous (looseness), but we attempted to understand why we (as well so many others) continued to be attracted to it, in spite of the inherent hazard. For us, we concluded that the allure certainly wasn't thrill seeking, but rather that metamorphic class 3 terrain really pushed our ability to work out complex routes to minimize the degree of difficulty. The more broken up nature of metamorphic ground allows for non-technical solutions to faces that would otherwise be too steep to be surmounted without going to class 4+ climbing, were they more massive rock (such as massive, sparsely fractured, granite).

In any case, this is but one example of a number of conversations I've had with folks that was at least partly triggered by Pat's passing. My wife, who is an avid backcountry fisherperson (fished over 500 backcountry Sierra lakes with me) and veteran of my best off trail backpacking trips, doesn't really have the peak bagging thing in her blood, even though she climbed 14 SPS peaks plus Mt Shasta with me (and is also much more prone to seek out class 3 than I am). In any case I told her about Pat's death (my wife, like me, had never met Pat, nor any of her friends) and showed her the various posts and links, and she too was deeply affected. How could one not be?

My condolences to you, Pat's family, friends, and colleagues. I couldn't agree with you more when you say "A very emotional day that I hope not to have to experience again anytime soon." Best wishes to you and everyone going up to the mountains for safe returns from all of your trips.

Cheers,

John