I know Patrick starting from our time as classmates in grad school at UCSF. We started there in the fall of 1999. That means we've known each other for 22 years! My fondest memories of our interactions there together include several evenings of dinner and drinks with the classmates (I once got a warning from a cop for stopping over the line at a stop sign in the Haight, but really it was for seeing whether all 5-6 of us packed into my old Dodge sedan were behaving ourselves) (we were!). Moreover, since Patrick had a few more years of lab experience than I did at that time, he taught me so much about what it takes to be a good young scientist in terms of perspective, ambition, hard work, and direction. I will always be grateful for that. There was also the time that he came over to my apartment so I could shave his head except for hair on the back of his head in the form of the word "ITCH" which I then dyed green for him - it was for a journal club presentation that he made that week in the grad program and it was a great reveal! So memorable.
Later in our careers, when Patrick was working at Genentech (GNE) and I was finishing my postdoc, I met up with him at a Society for Neuroscience conference in November 2013, probably in San Diego (?). What he said about working at GNE squashed all my hesitations about switching from academia to industry, as his main project was so stimulating and powerful and broadly applicable from a scientific point of view, and his encouragement was so unrestrained. I applied for a job in the Neuroscience department and started in March 2014. That was the best move I could have made and I attribute a lot of my decision to Patrick's influence.
In 2015, when Denali started, the person who had been my manager at GNE (Kimberly) went there. Patrick and I had a stealth conversation over coffee about how she is as a manager, since he had been thinking of making a change and Kimberly was hiring for a Biomarker Scientist position. I told him good things about my interactions with her and encouraged him to apply. I think that turned out well for him, from what I know! I am grateful to have been able to pass along a positive tip in his direction.
Patrick's sense of humor has always been spot on! The grace with which he has faced his journey these past several years is truly admirable and inspiring. I am sending all my love your way, Patrick! I cannot thank you enough for the major positive impact you have made on my life.
Shannon, The itch haircut is one of many dear memories I have of Patrick. Was shaved and dyed perfectly too! I was in the same lab as he was during grad school. He always seemed to have a smile hinting that something funny and playful was in his mind, about to be unleashed.
Patrick, you made the fun times more fun that I thought was possible and brought light and kindness during the hard times. Thinking of you, your friends, your family.