Remembering Pat Flynn

I found out that my friend Pat Flynn passed away this weekend at the age of 40.

Pat and I spent a lot of time together at St. Matthew's grade school in Glendale Heights. We were classmates for eight years, and basketball teammates for four of those.

Dad coached those Lancer basketball teams through about 150 games and more practices. We won considerably more than we lost during those formative years, and with due respect to the abilities of the rest of us on the floor... I'm not sure whether or not we'd have been a winning team without him. He could dribble with either hand, and was our go-to scorer, the point guard who made us go.

You wanted him on your softball team at recess too. And you voted for him in his run for class president ("Vote for Pat and I'll buy you a cat" will rank among the all-time campaign buttons).

I remember him as kind, and mostly tolerant of a cocky coach's-kid on the floor flapping his mouth.

I went to see him lead his Glenbard North hoops team to victory in a regional tournament years after St. Matt's graduation. A few years later, during his brief spell at Illinois State University, we actually rejoined on the court on an intramural basketball team which was personally special.

Naturally we became Facebook friends too.

When my NCHS basketball team made it to state, he sent several congratulatory messages about me and in remembrance of Dad who'd passed away ten years earlier as "the best coach ever." Those will remain with me as the final words we shared with each other.

A year ago he rallied the troops for our 25th St. Matt's reunion, which I blogged about at length at that time. The mourning and healing has begun for our class through the subsequent Facebook site that we started as a result of that outing. Once again, Pat had found a way to enrich us. Here are the words he shared in the class survey at that time, which now carry so much extra meaning and inspiration:

"I won't be there, but here are some memories I wanted to share w/ you Lancers from back in the day.

* Oliver Ramiro trying to teach me to DJ in his basement
* Henry Nocom & I singing "Shout" by Tears for Fears in that studio recording place in Stratford Square
* Ted Novy & I riding bikes to see "Back to the Future" for the 3rd time
* Eric Meyer & I walking to the Convenient Store on Friday Night's
* Becky Sparks piercing my ear with a safety pin & ice cube
* Jim Nagrant's dance to "Conga" by Gloria Estefan in music class
* Asking Laura Simon to be my girlfriend & then only communicating with her through notes because I was too scared/shy.
* My favorite Teacher was the guy with the mustache that worked as a beer vendor at Wrigley for the Cubs in the summer
* Last, but not least in countless memories provided by the Best Coach & one of my all-time favorite people...Mr. McDonald :-)"

I wish the best to his parents (proud Lancer supporters through it all) and three siblings. We'll miss and remember him dearly.