SATURDAY APRIL 23, 2016Patrick John Cardinal
May 25, 1961-April 19, 2016Canadian broadcasting has lost one of its most influential thinkers/ obsessives: Patrick Cardinal, a radio geek from childhood who never lost the passion as he climbed the corporate ladder and crisscrossed the country, died this week in Vancouver.
Patrick, Pat, Patty, Dad - father to Kael, brother to Jeff - was loved by so many.
Born in Winnipeg, Pat grew up all over the place, including Germany, Italy, Kenora, Dryden, Thunder Bay and Edmonton - with father, Rene; mother, Penny; and little brother (by just under one year) Jeff. Pat caught the travel bug early - and never lost it.
Summers were spent in Ontario at the cabin at Hawk Lake and at Willard Lake, where his grandparents owned a fishing camp.
Pat's teen years were mostly about Air Cadets, which helped shape the leader and person he would become. He started at 12 in Thunder Bay, and upon moving to Edmonton at 13, joined 12 Squadron with new school chum Blake Dean, who became a lifelong friend. Pat became squadron leader within two years, remarkably achieving the title of Warrant Officer before he was 16.
Pat's other obsession growing up, which he would turn into a career, was radio. As a child, he spent his allowance on records - The Guess Who's American Woman was his first purchase. By the time he was 12, he was recording himself on cassette. He joined the high school radio club, broadcasting at lunchtime. At night, he would lie in his room and tune the radio to far- away places on the AM dial - especially WLS in Chicago.
In 1979, Patrick turned his passion into a paycheque, landing his first job at CJRL in Kenora, as 'The Brave Stranger.' A summer gig turned into full time work. In 1981, he moved to CFRW in Winnipeg - initially as Brad Wilson; after a format change he became... Pat Cardinal. His career took him to 1040 Kicks and LG73 in Vancouver, then Hamilton, where he launched K-Lite FM, Edmonton for Power 92, and Toronto where he brought the Howard Stern Show to Q107. He helped launch JACK FM in Vancouver and then Toronto. In 2008, he became operations manager for Newcap Radio's Edmonton stations and later Alberta Program and Operations Manager. In 2011, he became GM for Astral's Edmonton radio stations, now owned by Bell Media.
Over the years, he learned from mentors including Brad Phillips, Howard Kroeger, Jim 'JJ' Johnson, Doug Rutherford, Gary Slaight and the late Bob Laine - and in turn mentored countless others.
Radio was not just a job for Patrick. He loved driving and punching around the dial, especially on road trips - where he could listen to radio in other markets. A favourite game was driving around, listening to song intros, trying to hit the post.
Pat was an early Internet adopter, lover of films (especially The Godfather), reader of maps and a world traveller. Berlin, New York and L.A. were favourite destinations. He loved watching (and playing) golf, and playing video games with Kael.
Kael was born in 1989 - Patrick's son with then-partner Natalie. Kael was the most important person in Patrick's life. He took huge pride in Kael's intelligence, kindness and achievements. His final words were 'I love you, son.'
In 2014, Patrick was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He fought it like a warrior and outlived predictions. He travelled, golfed with buddies, spent time with Kael and continued to obsess over ratings and other radio goings-on. Sunday dinners at Lorne and Joanne's were a weekly, grounding highlight.
The support he received from friends through this time has been enormous - especially from former wife, Kathy, Natalie and Rob, Chris, Lorne, Joanne and Richard - almost nightly visitors, Mark Pooley, Dan Lak, Vinka, Tamara, Marsha, Steve Jones and too many others to list. Every single visitor meant the world to Pat. In Toronto, Warren kept others in the industry informed about how Pat was doing.
Kael, Jeff and his wife, Barb, Kathy and Auntie Mary went over and above, staying with Patrick to look after him. Special thanks to the wonderful Dr. Daniel Renouf and the caring staff at the Vancouver General Hospital palliative care unit.
At home and at VGH, Patrick hosted a steady stream of visitors, many of whom travelled from out of town to see him. He held a party, which got a bit too rowdy for the palliative unit (where the staff were remarkable and kind). He made appointments on his laptop, scheduling people in. Many had booked plane tickets for pending visits. Pat's final outing was Tuesday afternoon - Starbucks for a latte.
He died Tuesday night in his room with a view at VGH, holding Kael's hand and surrounded by friends - including two of his exes, which says a lot about him. AC/DC was playing softly in the background.
Patrick is survived by son, Kael; brother, Jeff and his wife, Barb; nephew, Scott and niece, Krystal; Auntie Mary; cousins, Allan (Tricia) and Laura and their children; Uncle George (Josie) and cousin, Stephen; Aunt Margaret (Morris) and cousins, Beverly, Doug and Barb; cousins, Rob, Barry, Jamie, Michelle; extended family and so many friends. Predeceased by parents, Penny and Rene; beloved grandparents; Uncle Mike; Uncle Bob and cousin, David.
On the last full day of his life, Patrick learned that he would be inducted into the Broadcast Hall of Fame during Canadian Music Week in May. He was on a conference call with more than 20 people across North America when he received the news. 'Thank you so much,' he said, deeply emotional. 'I'm overwhelmed.'
A celebration of Pat's life will be held in Toronto at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the cancer charity of your choice.
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