Found Deceased MI - Dr. Teleka Patrick, 30, Kalamazoo, 5 Dec 2013 - #14

[SeriouslySearching]

Poor Teleka. What a tragedy.

But I owe this group my thanks -- thank you for all of the data, leads, tips, and support. All of it was vital to creating the twitter tool that we used to analyze Teleka's social media data. It was great to see everyone pull together. Most of all though, I want to think this group for caring so much. Missing people tend to be a blip on the news and then forgotten. The people on this website show compassion, patience, understanding, and an unholy amount of determination to keep these cases alive and if Teleka had survived that night, I have no doubt that you would've been among the first to find her footprint. Amazing job, on this case and many others.

I also appreciate how most of the media handled this case -- this very sensational tale involving so many titillating angles was handled with restraint and with a goal of bringing her home. Julie Mack and Rex Hall, Jr. in particular were outstanding.

So -- I'm left with a massive tweet database that through raw word count alone could fill three novels. I'm in the unique position of curating this huge body of work belonging to someone who is now no longer with us. What to do with it?

Well, I learned a few things about Teleka Patrick through all of this. The first, and the most inspiring, was her fierce will to live despite steep obstacles. Even in her final hour, I have no doubt that all of the driving and running that she was doing was, in her mind, to preserve her life. The second thing was that she had a huge desire to help people psychiatrically. She would have, at the very least, made an outstanding scientist. And the third was that she may have been in love with an imaginary person, but her feelings were strong and she spent a lot of time trying to (publicly through twitter) work them out. Her tweets show someone who struggles daily and won many battles before losing the war. It's a very intimate, heartbreaking, and somewhat frightening cautionary tale, stronger than most any fiction, and a way, a masterpiece in its own right. I can see the potential for it to do some good for society on many levels. In a way, Dr. Patrick will fulfill one of her life goals through the publicity surrounding her disappearance and death. My decision at this point in time, based on these reasons and the fact that she posted all of this to a public forum to begin with, is to keep it online.

Again -- what a tragedy. But thank you for all of your help and determination. It was an honor working with all of you!

You should write a book in Dr. Patrick's memory and give part of the funds to a scholarship or to research. You have done a great job, but could take it to another level.

 

[SeriouslySearching]

Snipped and BBM in red. The pager, $100, and keys to the car were found in Teleka's coat pockets. It was the Lexus that had been left sitting in a ditch only a few hundred feet from the lake.

:floorlaugh: of course it was.

 

[Roselvr]

Poor Teleka. What a tragedy.

But I owe this group my thanks -- thank you for all of the data, leads, tips, and support. All of it was vital to creating the twitter tool that we used to analyze Teleka's social media data. It was great to see everyone pull together. Most of all though, I want to think this group for caring so much. Missing people tend to be a blip on the news and then forgotten. The people on this website show compassion, patience, understanding, and an unholy amount of determination to keep these cases alive and if Teleka had survived that night, I have no doubt that you would've been among the first to find her footprint. Amazing job, on this case and many others.

I also appreciate how most of the media handled this case -- this very sensational tale involving so many titillating angles was handled with restraint and with a goal of bringing her home. Julie Mack and Rex Hall, Jr. in particular were outstanding.

So -- I'm left with a massive tweet database that through raw word count alone could fill three novels. I'm in the unique position of curating this huge body of work belonging to someone who is now no longer with us. What to do with it?

Well, I learned a few things about Teleka Patrick through all of this. The first, and the most inspiring, was her fierce will to live despite steep obstacles. Even in her final hour, I have no doubt that all of the driving and running that she was doing was, in her mind, to preserve her life. The second thing was that she had a huge desire to help people psychiatrically. She would have, at the very least, made an outstanding scientist. And the third was that she may have been in love with an imaginary person, but her feelings were strong and she spent a lot of time trying to (publicly through twitter) work them out. Her tweets show someone who struggles daily and won many battles before losing the war. It's a very intimate, heartbreaking, and somewhat frightening cautionary tale, stronger than most any fiction, and a way, a masterpiece in its own right. I can see the potential for it to do some good for society on many levels. In a way, Dr. Patrick will fulfill one of her life goals through the publicity surrounding her disappearance and death. My decision at this point in time, based on these reasons and the fact that she posted all of this to a public forum to begin with, is to keep it online.

Again -- what a tragedy. But thank you for all of your help and determination. It was an honor working with all of you!

Wish the basement post was temporarily open so we can discuss them there...
Hopefully the decision will be yours.

 

[zwiebel]

I think this is a new article. It contains family's tribute.

http://www.wzzm13.com/story/news/local/kalamazoo/2014/04/09/further-details-teleka-patrick/7500889/

Rest in Peace Teleka.

 

[LivingJuicy]

It's been a few months since I posted on Teleka's thread but I wanted to come back and pay my respects. I knew (or had a strong feeling) that this day would come and I'm grateful for the sense of closure, for everyone. I wish that her story had a different ending. RIP Teleka.


I think she her legacy is compassion.

“Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity.”

- Pema Chodron

 

[DeDee]

My head bows in remembrance of Dr. Taleka Patrick whom I came to know through her tweets and MSM reports and here at WS after her tragic disappearance. Each of us took away something beneficial in learning about her and the workings of the incredible mind.

The strange mystery involving this bright young lady is solved. Her sweet soul's search on this earth has ended. May she be at peace forevermore.


:rose:

 

[KRIME KING]

I actually joined WS from lurking status to read on TP in the social media thread. I also have a tremendous amount of respect for LE, Search/Rescue teams, Fire rescue, etc., who work very hard to find the missing, injured and lost. Placing responsibility on these folks for Ms. Patrick's inability to be found makes me say, Huh? The basic rule in safety after an accident or breakdown is stay in (if safely off the road) or near your car, turn on your hazards, turn on your interior lights, open your hood, place reflectors if you have an emergency kit, call for help if you can but most importantly, DO NOT LEAVE. The highway patrol located her car within a reasonable timeframe. Now learning she had a pager, was it a one way pager or did she have the ability to respond? Could she have notified someone that he was broke down on the highway, given a location, sent an SOS? If she was hiding in the woods out of fear and saw the police and tow company come take her car, why didn't she come out? I think she made a dreadful decision to bolt, at night, in the dark with winter cold temps, hop a fence and was in the water before LE was even on scene. Only Teleka has the answers to why she felt the need to do what she did. Condolences to her family, may she RIP.

Maybe fear, and her mental state at the time...thats why she bolted from the car...we don' t really know....but its probably the only reason why.

 

[bettiepageturner]

So sad. May she finally be at peace.

I'm thinking about the social media threads where everyone was speculating on the "riddles" Teleka left behind, that if we solved them we would know where she purposefully escaped to. Really really sad to think about that now, knowing she was there all along.

 

[tlcya]

koolaid man - you were an amazing resource on the social media and organizing it in a viewable useful way. There was so very much of it - almost too much. Thank you so much for your work downstairs on this case. While it did not lead to a living saveable TP it gave us a sympathetic view into her thoughts, her struggle. For that I thank you so much.

Octi -we may never know why she did not come forward when she (if she) saw the activity around her car. First the LEO who likely called in teh tow truck and later the tow truck. I tend to believe that by then, she had already run in a panic. I believe she was aware of the OP and and in her delusional state (and I do believe she was in one) thought perhaps a person I shall leave un-named or identified had thugs within the LE dept out "looking" for her to do her harm. If she even saw either LE or tow driver, she thought they were not trustworthy and ran directly form that area in a panic, and ended up in the lake.

I do not, cannot, believe that she took her own life. I believe her drowning was an accident in a terrified run from her demons. Her faith was such that I cannot imagine her purposefully committing that sin.

My heart hurts for her loved ones. I agree with them that this was not suicide.

In general, I tend to feel badly for everyone involved. I am irritated that the press continues to name and use MS celbrity to push for readership. I feel TP and MS were both victims of TP's illness and it is in very poor taste that the media and others continue to connect the man to her story. It detracts from what I feel is the real story.

A story about a bright, intelligent, motivated, ambitious and well loved young woman who was so worried about being labelled and connected to teh stigma of mental illness that she chose to hide her increasing issues and that ended in her death.

To me, that is what I take form this case as I move forward. That mental illness in this country is still greatly misunderstood, stigmatized and taboo in this country. That makes me so sad. There is no telling what this beautiful soul was capable of. And all that is gone now.

thanks to both koolaid man and octipus for letting me jump off your recent posts

 

[Owutatangledweb]

It's been a few months since I posted on Teleka's thread but I wanted to come back and pay my respects. I knew (or had a strong feeling) that this day would come and I'm grateful for the sense of closure, for everyone. I wish that her story had a different ending. RIP Teleka.


I think she her legacy is compassion.

“Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity.”

- Pema Chodron

BEAUTIFUL! Now we need to teach the rest if the world to have compassion for mental illness.

 

[Philigumbo]

Rest in peace, Dr. Teleka Patrick. While you worried that a psychiatric diagnosis of your own would hamper your career, your own suffering, now made public, may be what it takes to end the stigma regarding mental illness.

 

[SStarr33]

Wouldn't it be great if there could be a Teleka's Law that has to do with helping other's with similar issues?

 

[SStarr33]

According to her ex, Teleka knew how to swim:

http://posttrib.suntimes.com/news/porter/26743371-537/ex-husband-says-patricks-death-a-tragedy.html

 

[concernedmother]

I think she was just in such a state of panic she probably fought the water instead of trying to swim out of it.

 

[LayzeeDayzee]

According to her ex, Teleka knew how to swim:

http://posttrib.suntimes.com/news/porter/26743371-537/ex-husband-says-patricks-death-a-tragedy.html

Knowing how to swim means little when you end up in freezing cold water and are fully clothed (including a heavy winter coat), and likely ended up in that lake very unexpectedly. Hypothermia can overtake someone very quickly. Her wet clothing and footwear would weigh her down significantly and all it takes is panicking and a few gulps of water that end up in the lungs.

 

[vulture]

I'm a very good swimmer and I'm not confident about my ability to swim in cold water at all. Once I jumped in 61 degree water in a large natural spring with a swimsuit on, on a 100 degree day and even though I was expecting the cold it was difficult to stay in for even a few minutes. I declined to swim all the way across the large spring (800 ft deep) because I wasn't confident my legs would keep working, I stayed in the shallow area. It's really debilitating! Combine even colder water and air temp with dark and fear and maybe being taken by surprise by the presence of water and being fully clothed, I can easily see how even someone who can swim would succumb.

 

[Taticat]

On a slightly related note: Police are being trained to deal more effectively with the mentally ill.

http://news.msn.com/us/police-taught-to-spot-signs-of-psychiatric-crisis


Sent from my Lite-Brite modded to run Free BSD.

 

[Madeleine74]

I feel bad that Dr. Patrick had thousands of people digging dirt on her all for the supposed purpose of sleuthing. None of that invasion actually led to finding her. None of it helped investigators, and they even said it didn't. All it did was provide grist for the gossip mill and invaded the privacy of others too, most notably an innocent pastor, who surely had nothing to do with this disappearance and was thrust into an unwelcome spotlight and pointed to as a suspect.

Dr. Patrick was within a couple hundred yards of her abandoned car. But every aspect of her life was speculated about. Kind of adding insult to injury. What she most needed was what most missing people need: local awareness and feet on the ground in the immediate area. Winter finally gave up it's harsh hold to allow her to surface to a local community member who was in the right place to spot her. This was a personal tragedy and I hope she'll find peace as her soul continues its journey.

 

[KRIME KING]

I feel bad that Dr. Patrick had thousands of people digging dirt on her all for the supposed purpose of sleuthing. None of that invasion actually led to finding her. None of it helped investigators, and they even said it didn't. All it did was provide grist for the gossip mill and invaded the privacy of others too, most notably an innocent pastor, who surely had nothing to do with this disappearance and was thrust into an unwelcome spotlight and pointed to as a suspect.

Dr. Patrick was within a couple hundred yards of her abandoned car. But every aspect of her life was speculated about. Kind of adding insult to injury. What she most needed was what most missing people need: local awareness and feet on the ground in the immediate area. Winter finally gave up it's harsh hold to allow her to surface to a local community member who was in the right place to spot her. This was a personal tragedy and I hope she'll find peace as her soul continues its journey.

We did not make her videos or write her tweets she did, and she posted them online, in the public domain...nobody here even knew her then.

She was one of the lucky to go missing, they were a lot of people concerned about, and looking for her, more than most.


Investigators did not find her, a fisherman did...... she was very close to her car, even finding her the morning after, would of been too late for her and me, if I were law enforcement.


Feet on the ground, I'll give you A+ on that one....even if the dog walked to I94, you still have to do a thorough ground, and lake search in this case.

Sincerely.

KK

 

[Prosecution_Rests]

I feel bad that Dr. Patrick had thousands of people digging dirt on her all for the supposed purpose of sleuthing. None of that invasion actually led to finding her. None of it helped investigators, and they even said it didn't. All it did was provide grist for the gossip mill and invaded the privacy of others too, most notably an innocent pastor, who surely had nothing to do with this disappearance and was thrust into an unwelcome spotlight and pointed to as a suspect.

Dr. Patrick was within a couple hundred yards of her abandoned car. But every aspect of her life was speculated about. Kind of adding insult to injury. What she most needed was what most missing people need: local awareness and feet on the ground in the immediate area. Winter finally gave up it's harsh hold to allow her to surface to a local community member who was in the right place to spot her. This was a personal tragedy and I hope she'll find peace as her soul continues its journey.

I believe TP's parents and family went public about this case once the police told them that no foul play was suspected.

People did not sleuth TP in order to find negative things about her but to get a clue as to where she could have gone and yes, in many cases that involve mentally ill people, they will almost always be found within feet from their abandoned car.

I also have the give all of the law enforcement agencies who helped on this case a lot of credit. They were quiet about a lot but I think TP'S family took this to be a negative thing but all along they have been working very hard and professionally.