For Pat and Dave

This year has been a struggle for all of us LGBTs fighting for equality in Colorado. We made some great strides but also saw first hand how grossly unfair some individuals and groups can be towards us. Back in April and May I was at the Capitol Building several days in a row, protesting, watching and waiting as the fate of the Civil Unions Bill was up and then down, and then back up again until its final death by a kill committee. During all of that drama I met some great people, and I learned a lot about Colorado Legislators, and the local political press. It seemed like one big dysfunctional family and since that time I've felt a kinship with those who stood out in front of the fight, and one such hero was Colorado State Senator Pat Steadman. 

For those of you who don't know Pat, he's openly gay, a democrat, and this past week he lost his partner David Misner to pancreatic cancer. Dave and Pat were together for 11 years. They modeled the type of relationship that any couple would envy. In July the couple announced that Dave had been diagnosed with a deadly, aggressive cancer but they remained optimistic. Despite losing civil unions to  political shenanigans Pat and Dave kept on going. And despite facing the underlined legal inequities that come with being LGBT and the challenge of dying, Pat and Dave kept going. Why? Because that's what you do when you love someone. 

Their love, their struggle and their loss are real. But despite the pain of it all there is still a rallying spirit. Pat Steadman, one of our State's heroes needs us to rally around him now just like he rallied for all of us. None of us should have to experience the loss of a spouse, but it happens, and we are often powerless against it. But, we do have the power to change the law so that when terrible events like this do happen we aren't treated unfairly because we are gay. I know it sometimes feels like there is a long, hard road ahead of us before all Coloradans are considered equal under the eyes of the law, but we can't forget. Relationships like these are just too precious not to protect.

A memorial service will be held for Dave Misner on Monday, September 24th at 10:30 a.m. in Mitchell Hall at the Denver Botanic Gardens, 1007 York Street, Denver. Make a charitable donation to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network in memory of David Misner at http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/Dave_Misner/KeeptheMemoryAlive