In Memoriam: Dr. Jeffrey Patterson, President, PSR

Dr. Jeffrey PattersonIt is with heavy heart, deep sadness and sense of loss, that Beyond Nuclear pays tribute to Dr. Jeffrey Patterson at the time of his unexpected death due to a heart attack on the night of January 23. Dr. Patterson had long served -- at the local and national levels -- as a leader of Physicians for Social Responsibility, the U.S. affiliate of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, which won the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize.

PSR has issued a press release about Dr. Patterson's sudden passing, and the tremendous accomplishments of his lifetime of public service. Please also see a short bio on Dr. Patterson, as well as the PSR web post about him. The online PSR press release includes photos of Jeff in action.

The University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health -- where Dr. Patterson had served for many decades -- has also posted a tribute.

So too did Nuclear Energy Information Service (NEIS) of Illinois. NEIS included a link to Dr. Patterson's address at the 2012 "Mountain of Radioactive Waste 70 Years High" conference in Chicago (beginning at about the 56:00 minute mark), which Beyond Nuclear co-sponsored along with NEIS and FOE. In fact, Dr. Patterson also led a workshop at the June 2010 radioactive waste conference held at Loyola University in Chicago, co-sponsored by Beyond Nuclear, NEIS, NIRS, and other groups.

Beyond Nuclear had been in discussions with Dr. Patterson since last summer about him conducting a speaking tour across MI. Numerous presentations had been scheduled between February 12th and February 17th, to feature Dr. Patterson speaking on "Nuclear Power: What You Need to Know about Price, Pollution and Proliferation."

The Cap Times of Madison, WI -- Jeff's home town -- wrote in his memory: "We can imagine no better tribute to this fine man than to rededicate ourselves to the work of ridding the world of nuclear weapons, a cause to which he contributed so profoundly."

Along those lines, in Dr. Patterson's honor -- as he would have wanted -- his speaking tour will proceed. PSR national board member Alfred Meyer, a close friend and colleague of Jeff, will stand in to deliver Dr. Patterson's presentation, to carry forward his valuable work.