Our Friend, Pat Gruber (Continued)
by Stephen Henninger
Pat’s true love was comics, though he was truly in his element selling comics. He loved every aspect of the Con and is the reason I am doing what I do now. He was one of the few people that have been with the MNCBA since the late 1980’s. He was proud of giving back to the community. The food drive meant a lot to him.
If you didn’t ever get a chance to meet Pat, I am sorry. You missed out. If you want to hear a story about him – just ask the guy behind the long boxes you are digging though, or the guy digging next to you. Chances are they both have a great Pat story.
One of my favorite Pat stories is when we went to Crypticon about ten years ago when they had Michael Biehn and Lance Henriksen. We went because they were in Pat’s favorite movie, Aliens. We were able to spend the whole night talking with Michael Biehn.
It was great; Beihn had a million stories about all the many movies he was in, and the characters he played. It is one of the fondest memories I have with Pat. Additionally, it was at the Ramada Bloomington, which was the old Thunderbird Hotel – the hotel the Con used to be at before it moved to the MN State Fairgrounds.
Pat was a generous man. He always lit the room he was in with his smile and personality. We didn’t always agree, but we never fought.
I know this isn’t doing him justice. He deserves better than what I can put into words. I am writing this with tears in my eyes. He left us way too soon.
I was so proud when Pat told not only me, but others, that my team and I were doing such a great job on bringing the MNCBA back. I have had a lot of people tell me that, but it meant the most coming from him. I will never be the same now that Pat is gone. I think about him every day… it’s a pain that won’t go away.
