Patti L. Brainard- IT’S ALL ABOUT “PATTITUDE”!

Some of you may have missed this story written by Vicky Sullivan.

They came from all walks of life; black, white, gay, straight, musicians, fans, sober and drinkers to Ace’s Live Music Venue on Sunday, February 8th.  It was a mix of differing lifestyles but everyone there had a common purpose, to celebrate and honor the life of Patti L. Brainard.

I was there as her friend and photographer to capture all the moments of this Celebration of Life.  What I saw was amazing! I saw love of your brother.  No boundaries of sex or color, people were all together honoring a woman everyone loved in a most wonderful way!

Patti B., as she was often referred had started posting on Facebook what she was grateful for every day after she was diagnosed with cancer.  It quickly caught on with friends and family, people were following her writings every day.  Her honestly and humor gave thought to what is really important in life at a time that must have been  most challenging for her.  It started the hashtag word #pattitude.  Having an attitude of gratitude, Patti style.  

Musically, she has been a player in the Sarasota/Bradenton area since the 70’s.  Twinkle Yochim shared the well-known story about how Patti used to sneak a 15 year old Twinkle into The Stables, an old back-in-the-day bar, not to drink – but for Twinkle to sing with the band. She knew then that Twinkle had something special. Patti told me many times that Twinkle was her favorite singer – bar none!  

She played in 12 Step events and festivals, helping people that were getting sober. She was willing to pick up at a moment’s notice and play bass for any number of bands in need.  A openly gay woman, an inspiration to other women dealing with gay issues.  She touched people’s lives in so many ways.  

We are all going to miss Patti B..  She has left all of us with an example of a power- PATTITUDE!