Yesterday we learned that Pat Dolan, a co-founder of Enright Ridge Urban Ecovillage, died. She was an important part of our lives for many years. The first meeting, when we founded Enright Ridge Urban Ecovillage in June, 2004, was held in her home, as were many meetings following.
Eileen and I first got to know Pat well in 1969. She was in graduate school working on her Master’s degree in Social Work and had a field placement at Catholic Social Service Bureau in Covington, KY. Eileen was the head of the family services department there, and I was a staff person. It was shortly after she came that Eileen and I began dating. One of Pat’s papers for school related to supervisor/supervisee dating. Pat later was hired to start the Social Work Department at Northern Kentucky University, a place where Eileen taught for several years.
Pat moved to Enright Ave., destined to become Enright Ridge Urban Ecovillage, in the 1980’s. Eileen and I started Imago, an ecological education organization in 1978 in our home on Enright. Pat became its first president. A number of people, through the years, moved to Enright through their association with Imago, as did Pat. In the 1980’s and 90’s we had a dinner group that ate together five or six evenings per week. One of the dinner group would host the meal at their house and cook the meal, once a week. We usually had eight people in the dinner group, so there was some pairing for meal preparation. We got to know each other quite well.
Pat hosted many gatherings in her home. We had a small food coop and buying club which was located in her basement for years.
Pat was a major part of our lives up until she moved from her home in Enright Ridge Urban Ecovillage. She determined that she did not want to continue taking care of her house and half acre lot and decided to move to an apartment. The last few years of her life she spent in a condo in a Senior facility.
Even after she moved we would get together. She was part of a monthly book club that we started. We would go out to dinner at times. But, it was never the same as when she lived just four doors away from us.
Next time I’ll write about her spiritual life and her death.
COMMUNITY EARTH ALLIANCE 