Patrick Lawrence Gooden

Dear Gooden family,
I was so saddened to learn of Patrick's passing. Such a kind and thoughtful guy. My name is Linda Wilson and I had the honor of knowing Patrick and Christine. Christine and I had been best friends for years and I was a bridesmaid at their wedding. I was so stunned to learn Christine had passed in 2015. Now they are together again - watching over their family with so much love and pride. May God Bless them both and all of you as well...
With heartfelt condolences, Linda (Dykstra) Wilson

Dear Papa,

Jean Piaget once said, "Children require long, uninterrupted periods of play and exploration". We were all spoiled, because all of us had you to play with. I underscore the importance of play because of its paramountcy in life, and the way you used it to give us some of the most important lessons without having to teach them to us. I am so thankful that you are my grandpa.

I don´t know if I would have loved the forest as much as I do if you wouldn´t have taken me to play in them. I wouldn´t have appreciated Old Yeller, eating marshmallows in a tent by the fireplace, or looking at the stars the same way. I think about the piggyback rides by the ocean in Coos Bay and through the snow in Alaska, and I am lucky to have seen so much from your shoulders. I will miss your stories, and how you always had one ready for me because you knew I would ask. I am going to miss all the fun. The times we went fishing, or put frogs in a bathtub, or went Big Foot hunting. I will miss our talks, and your esoteric knowledge about life and history.

I will miss how authentic you were. You were such a kind and genuine person, and you could start a conversation with anyone. I´ll miss your sense of humor, and the way you never missed an opportunity to drop a punch line. The way you talked about nature made other people love it too. The way you told stories made us believe in magic, and we still do.

I remember asking you when I was a kid about dying because I was so worried that you would go away. You told me that everyone´s time comes, and it came fast. I am thankful that the last time I saw you we played. We talked about history, and you told me about Custer for another countless time, and we rolled Playdoh in our hands. I hope that when I am old and gray and when it is my time too, that we will be able to play again.

Warmly,
Your Grand Daughter

P.S. please have another story to tell.