In Memory of Kevin, Tools R US (1 Viewer)

[arcteryx]

I am not on here much and just saw this.

Never met him and didn't converse much with him, but he was a plethora of knowledge.

My grandmother passed away 1.5 weeks ago at the young age of 93, and this is yet another reminder of how fragile and terminal life is. While these pile of bolts we talk about are hobbies and pass the time, it's the community that is the bond. Condolences to friends and family.

Cruise On Kevin.

 

[Wife]

I just hopped into his recent posts...scrolled down and the dude would just churn out valuable information left and right. random stuff that you'd never find in any FSM.

Tools R Us

forum.ih8mud.com

Met him once (at Cruise Moab like many others) and always enjoyed his forum input. A good man.

So as a medical professional, what happened to him?

He passed from sepsis shock and pneumonia

 

[ppc]

@Wife thank you for joining all of us on this forum. I hope you find solace in the 200+ posts to date from members of this forum that are remembering Kevin and are so appreciative of his contributions and technical help.

 

[Wife]

I have no words to express my gratitude for the heartfelt response from the mud community. My heart is broken. If Kevin were here he would figure out a way to repair it. (Duct tape or epoxy come to mind). It's what he did. He did it with humility, wit, kindness, and a good heart. He wasn't dazzled by money or bling. But after reading these posts,. I know I was married to one of the wealthiest men on God's green earth. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you all.

 

[80t0ylc]

I just learned this evening of Kevin's passing and still trying to process the news. I've no excuse, other than I usually ignor the "sticky" threads, but for some reason, not tonight. First, my condolences to family (@Wife & @BrotherRob ) and close friends that have had their lives severely altered by this happening. Thank you for sharing the details, because it just didn't make sense how quick he was gone. My sympathies to you who were close to him, who must all the more be in shock. I would have liked to, but never got to meet Kevin, but I recently wheeled with @LandCruiserPhil who I know was well aquainted with Kevin. Kevin's name or handle "Tools R Us" came up in conversation at least once, because nobody that frequents Mud, talks tech about Land Cruisers (especially 80's) with out somehow mentioning how "Tools" helped them, or someone they know out. That's the influence this man had. I remember disagreeing once with Kevin on a post and was quickly flamed & corrected by several others before seeing the error of my ways. His knowledge and advice helped me out with my cooling system woes on my '94. And there were other times on maintenance issues that I benefitted from his advice. He will be sorely missed by many local people and all in the Mud community. Prayers for healing, peace and comfort for your loss.

 

[DSRTRDR]

I have no words to express my gratitude for the heartfelt response from the mud community. My heart is broken. If Kevin were here he would figure out a way to repair it. (Duct tape or epoxy come to mind). It's what he did. He did it with humility, wit, kindness, and a good heart. He wasn't dazzled by money or bling. But after reading these posts, I know I was married to one of the wealthiest men on God's green earth. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you all.

beautiful words, Sue

welcome on MUD

 

[Flipped Bezel]

@Wife my condolences on your loss of Kevin...ToolsRUs may be gone from his Earthly existence but his legacy will live on in the hearts and memories of his many friends.

His sage advice will also continue to help others in this community through his words of wisdom posted here. The knowledge he shared with us will add substance to these boards for many many years to come.......

 

[richardlillard1]

Hello everyone,

My apologies for yet another message, but what follows is a few more details.

After discussing with his wife, Sue, I now have an update for those who have asked about how to go about making donations in Kevin’s name.

For anyone interested in making a donation in Kevin’s memory, the family desires that donations go to TRAL. Donations will be used for a physical memorial dedicated to Kevin and beyond that, to the TRAL projects and programs he was so passionate about.

You can make your donations through the “donate” button on the TRAL website. Please leave a note that includes “Kevin Patterson Memorial Fund” when you donate this way. We will also have a donation box at the memorial event on November 30th.

Because we know google is not always the clearest, Rich Smith was kind enough to draft up this map to help anyone who might have additional questions about how to get to Cottonwood Camp.

I’ve also had a few people inquire about weather, which we’ve all been keeping a close eye on. As of right now it is projected to rain Thursday and Friday. This might leave things out there a bit wet, but nothing we aren’t accustomed to in our common love of the outdoors.

A couple big thank yous to Mark Montijo for helping John Bricker and I make sure Kevin’s Land Cruiser is good for his wife to drive on Saturday and to Evan Rowland, who sent me an email this afternoon to let me know he went out to Cottonwood Camp and picked up pretty much all of the trash out there today.

And I would also like to extend a huge thank you to every single one of you for your continued patience, support, and assistance with everything. Please have a safe and happy thanksgiving.


Richard

 

[richardlillard1]

I have no words to express my gratitude for the heartfelt response from the mud community. My heart is broken. If Kevin were here he would figure out a way to repair it. (Duct tape or epoxy come to mind). It's what he did. He did it with humility, wit, kindness, and a good heart. He wasn't dazzled by money or bling. But after reading these posts,. I know I was married to one of the wealthiest men on God's green earth. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you all.

Looks like you got it working! Welcome to mud. Talk to you soon.

 

[Wingnut]

Welcome Sue!
I am working on a slide show of pictures to have Saturday if my computer and all the old hard drives will cooperate .

 

[Cruiserhead05]

I’ve been a quiet, but active member on mud for 16 years, since the age of 17. As long as I can remember, there are a few key folks on mud and in the 80 section more specifically, who have been major contributors.

Although I never had the pleasure of interacting with Kevin specifically, I benefited greatly from the knowledge and time he invested here. For that I am very thankful.

Thoughts and prayers to Kevin’s family and his wife. A major loss and someone who will clearly be missed.

 

[shocktower]

@Wife we all lost a great man he was, so gracious with his knowledge, of these money pits, and always willing to give correct information to the new and old people who have these beasts

 

[-Spike-]

For those of you planning to attend the memorial gathering: Some of us had planned to show up early at 8am to clean up the area but someone beat us to it, so we won't be doing that. We'll see those of you attending at 10am tomorrow.

 

[Chris FJ80]

How sad to see this news this morning. I did not know Kevin well, but like many of those on this thread I learned a ton from his postings: everything from complicated stuff (like how to cool your 80 in the Arizona heat) to simpler things (like his trick of using the thin metal from a wiper blade as an electrical connecter pin release). I've been to his shop out in Mesa a few times to buy, sell, or trade a rare-ish part and was always fascinated to see what project he and inkpot had going on at the time. What a loss this is to our community. My condolences to Kevin's wife and family. He was a good man and has helped so many people, we cannot count the number.

 

[thetoyotaman]

Safe ride and blessings to everyone there today. If I lived there I would participate.

 

[SupraTuRD]

Deepest condolences to Kevin’s family and friends.

 

[richardlillard1]

An amazing turn out today for what everyone agreed was the first annual Kevin Patterson run, thank you all for everything!

The first picture is before everyone got there (another 10 or so additional vehicles showed up) and the second was from the group of trucks which ran what we call Roller Coaster after lunch, complete with power discs!

And of course, a big line of trucks.

More to come. I know @Wingnut got some too, amongst several others.

 

[80t0ylc]

Please send out a notice ahead of time when future annual Kevin Patterson runs are made! I plan on coming to AZ to do this run specifically. Thanks for posting!

 

[DSRTRDR]

the idea is to keep the memorial run on the Saturday after Thanksgiving - Kevin had led trail runs in the Tonto National Forest for many years on this particular day, so it is very appropriate for us to continue this tradition

 

[rolliges]

the idea is to keep the memorial run on the Saturday after Thanksgiving - Kevin had led trail runs in the Tonto National Forest for many years on this particular day, so it is very appropriate for us to continue this tradition

This is a fantastic ideas. Well deserved.