Empathic, intuitive, an old soul, compassionate, intelligent
Eric was an empathic soul; so caring and sensitive. Although introspective, he was a great conversationalist when drawn out from his inner turmoil. He had a discerning character, picking friends who were kind to others and who shared his philosophy on life. He was loyal to those friends and was protective of his mom. His interests varied from astronomy and history to collecting comics, vinyl, and action figures. He loved video games and watching informative podcasts.
The divorce of his mother and father deeply affected Eric. He was an only child and four years old at the time. He was confused and upset and developed migraines. Eric was sweet, shy, and sensitive. He had a small circle of close friends and loved playing with them. One fun memory happened was when he was nine. He took a friend of his to the bank and tried to make a withdrawal, intent on going to the arcade with his friend. The teller told him she couldn’t let him have money without a proper picture ID. He ran home, grabbed one of his team baseball pictures, ran back to the bank, and said, “see – it’s me!” He tried various team sports but was more interested in animals, reading, drawing, writing, and playing with action figures. Eric often remarked that he wished he had a sibling.
He did have a constant and faithful companion for eight years. It was his golden retriever, Scout. They were inseparable. Several times in his last year, Eric mentioned through tears that it worried him that Scout was getting older. He said “Mom, I just don’t know how I will survive if something happens to Scout.” Eric died in March, and in July Scout was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer that took him in September. Scout died in almost the exact spot where Eric had taken his last breath. Eric’s mother felt like Eric was there that day to walk Scout over the rainbow bridge.
Another love of Eric’s was music. He became a self-taught and gifted guitarist and drummer. He wrote music and recorded some of his songs at a studio in California with a member of the band Terror (one of his favorite bands). He often said during the last years that music had saved his life.
Eric enlisted in the US Army when he was twenty. He served proudly for almost six years and was deployed to Iraq during the Global War on Terror. He attained the rank of Sergeant and had a desire to help the younger, inexperienced men in his unit. They turned to him for guidance for everything from soldiering to personal problems. He was a worthy leader. He was fair and honest with them, and they felt connected to him.
His Army service was his greatest pride. Unfortunately, the things he did and saw created the groundwork for physical and mental pain that would follow him the rest of his life. His mother believes that his greatest accomplishment was his determination to stay drug free. She knew what a struggle those times were for him.
In his last few years, he bought things for people, gave people money, and tried to help those he knew were struggling. He was kind and compassionate to the end. His last compassionate act was being an organ donor; he was able to donate several organs including his heart, so that others would have life.
Eric’s mother, Joanne Gillespie, provided the information for this narrative.
July 20, 1983- March 7, 2022 – Age 38
Portrait Artist: Theresa Clower
Narrative Writer: Lynn McKnight
