PAT SULLIVAN TRIBUTE WALL
HONORING THE LEGACY OF PAT SULLIVAN
HeartBrothers Foundation Co-Founder
PAT SULLIVAN TRIBUTE WALL
Honoring the Legacy of Our Co-Founder
Through his work with the HeartBrothers Foundation, our beloved Co-Founder Pat Sullivan touched countless lives. To honor his legacy, we created this tribute wall, where the inspiration he generated can live forever, and inspire limitless others to follow in his footsteps. If Pat impacted you or your world in some way, we invite you to send us your tribute to Pat to be added to the wall below.
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To further honor Pat's life and his relentless dedication to easing the burden of Heart Failure for patients and their loved ones, please consider making a donation to the HeartBrothers Foundation today. There are no words to adequately describe how much it meant to Pat anytime a person or organization contributed to the HeartBrothers Foundation—he was forever strategizing new ways to implement those funds to help the Heart Failure community through HeartBrothers programming.
To learn more about Pat's journey, read his Heart Transplant Story, and our blog tribute to him.
With all our hearts, we thank you for being a member of the HeartBrothers community. We look forward to sharing the organization’s ongoing accomplishments with you as we lead the HeartBrothers Foundation ever-higher into the future—it is the best possible way we, as an organization, can pay tribute to the wonderful, incomparable Pat Sullivan.
"Pat and I shared the same birthday, a deep admiration for each other and a common goal! I too had made a commitment and promise: one night while I was laying in my bed in Tufts' Pratt 8 with many tubes entering and exiting my body, I made the promise to myself and God that if I got through this transplant ordeal alive, I would dedicate my life to paying it forward and support other patients traveling the Heart Failure journey. Over the next six or so years, my acquaintance with Pat evolved into a deep friendship. Pat, to me, was like a brother I never had. We shared many stories and deep felt emotions during these years. No matter how down we were, be it from post heart transplant health challenges or dealing with the emotional roller coaster of anti-rejection medication, he was always there for me. His loss is very hard at many different levels and as a friend once said 'The hardest part of healing after you have lost someone you love, is to recover the you that went away with them.'
Patrick Sullivan, you will always be my brother in heaven, as you were on earth."
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Hamid Mahdavy
HeartBrothers Leadership Team, Board of Directors Vice President
Heart Transplant Recipient
"I had the privilege of meeting Pat a few years ago, and his words touched my heart. He shared his story with me, which gave me hope as my son was a donor to HeartBrother Hamid Mahdavy. Pat shared encouraging words and all the wonderful things the HeartBrothers were doing. He was an amazing man and friend and will be greatly missed, but never forgotten."
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Charlene Slaver Roosevelt
Family Member of Heart Donor
"I met Pat when the HeartBrothers had just started, in the cafeteria of Tufts Medical Center, with Co-Founder Bob Romer. I've worked with the HeartBrothers Foundation ever since. There were a few days (and I'm sure many can relate) when I wasn't operating at full emotional capacity during a team call. Pat called me personally after each time, always with the same sentiment: 'Take the leash and go walk your dog. Leave your phone at home. Breathe the fresh air. Move your body. Because, Emily, it's a great day to be alive.' I have never forgotten that. Every day is a blessing. It took hearing it from a man who woke up because of the generosity of another human and knew to be grateful. He was selfless until his very last minute. It was an honor to know him. He will be missed. By me. By many. We love you, Pat."
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Emily Lalone Ianuario
HeartBrothers Leadership Team, Marketing & Events
"I went to Cedars Sinai in LA. I had so much support and made many transplant friends. When I came home to Maine, I desperately needed a support group. The closest group I could find was a group at my local hospital for folks with defibrillators. One of the patients told me about Patrick. I made a phone call and when he was traveling in my area, Leslie and Pat took me out for lunch and told me about the HeartBrothers. Pat was a wonderful man. He gave so much of his gifted life to help others."
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Anonymous
Heart Transplant Recipient
"My family first met Bob and Pat in the Fall of 2014. Our son, Kyle, who was 32 years old, was at Tufts waiting for a heart transplant. Pratt 8 was our home away from home and Bob and Pat would come visit with patients and families offering hope and support. They were such an inspiration. Our son received his donor heart on December 10, 2014—a day when every emotion came to light. Pat, may you have eternal peace. You, your wife, Leslie, and your family, as well as Bob and the Heart Brothers Foundation will always be in our prayers. Your entire foundation is inspiring and amazing. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts."
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Anonymous
Heart Failure Caregiver
"I only knew Pat a little bit, but when I saw him once a year at the Mike Gustin Golf Tournament, he made an extra effort to speak with me, ask about my four kids, introduce me to others, and make sure I had enough to eat. He was also a good friend and fellow HeartBrother to my husband, John Sohmer, who passed in 2021. Pat was one of the first people to reach out to me, and always continued to checked in on us. I was honored to have this person, who I didn't know well, genuinely care for me and my family. As I learned in his obituary, that was just Pat. If only this world could have more Pats!"
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Jesse Sohmer
Heart Failure Caregiver
"I met Pat in 2022. I was waiting for a heart transplant at Tufts. The HeartBrothers came to see me and that opened the door for me to learn about the HeartBrothers Foundation. That is how I met Pat. I knew right away he was special. Pat and I formed a bond. He was a mentor for me to be the best HeartBrother I could be. I promised Pat I would carry the HeartBrothers' flag onward as long as I could. He is terribly missed and his legacy will live for many years to come. God has gained a very special angel."
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Jay Toland
Heart Transplant Recipient
Rest easy my friend. I will see you on the other side."
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Anonymous
Heart Transplant Recipient
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David Kornwolf
Heart Transplant Recipient
"Pat Sullivan was a hero to me after my dad's heart attack and Heart Failure diagnosis in 2020. Knowing nothing about Heart Failure, I googled "heart failure foundations," and stumbled across a phone number for the HeartBrothers. I spoke to Pat on a Saturday morning and counseled me through my tears and many questions about what to do. Miraculously, Pat was connected to the heart surgeon at Northwestern University in Chicago where my dad needed to be transferred but was awaiting a bed. Pat emailed him personally to advocate for my family—a family he had never met, hundreds of miles away. Within an hour, a bed was available and to this day, I credit that to Pat. It was the closest thing to a miracle I've ever experienced, and my dad re-reads that email every year. Pat checked in with me several times throughout the weekend, and was an anchor in a very tumultuous time. You never forget the people who show up for you in those moments—Pat will forever be that person to me. Months later, I had the privilege to write some grant proposals for the HeartBrothers. As a grant writer for many nonprofits, I can say that the work done by Pat and the HBF team is nothing short of remarkable. He leaves behind a legacy of empathy that will be remembered by many, including me and my dad. Prayers and love to Pat's family during this unimaginable loss."
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Kelli Knott
Heart Failure Caregiver
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Karen Klimczak
Heart Transplant Recipient
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Amy DeNuzzio
Senior Clinical Social Worker, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
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Anonymous
Heart Failure Community Member
"Although I did not have the honor to know Pat as well as I would have liked, during the times I spoke with him, what was obvious was his dedication and devotion to the HeartBrothers and to all of us whose unique circumstances bring us together. Pat was a fine man, a warrior—just the kind of guy you want when things get really tough. Our loss is heaven's gain."
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Mark Callahan Sr.
Heart Failure Community Member
"My husband Sal and I met Pat and Bob at the very beginning of each of their Heart Failure journeys. Sal was an LVAD destination patient. They spent time together on Tufts Medical Center's Pratt 8 and also at Kindred Rehab. Pat was a strong and dedicated man. Love and peace to him. I hope they are reminiscing in heaven."
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Anonymous
Heart Failure Caregiver