The MOK Leisure Unlimited family lost one of our own in the September 11 World Trade Center attacks. Dipti Patel, a former Fairchild / Loral employee was in the Trade Center working for Cantor Fitzgerald when the two planes crashed into the towers which eventually collapsed. She is still among the missing.

It's been quite a few years since Dipti had been seen at an MOK event, but even after all these years, I'm certain that anyone who has ever met Dipti, remembers her well.

Brash, loud, and forward, Dipti was one of the true masters of shock value (something I happen to know a little bit about). I think that's one of the reasons I liked her so much. Nothing was too extreme as long as it got the desired response.

Slender and attractive, people just meeting Dipti did not know what they were in for, but it didn't take long for them to find out. Within minutes, newcomers would be motionless like a deer in the headlights, their jaws hanging open in amazement of the things this petit woman was saying and/or doing. An encounter with Dipti was always one to remember.

Although Dipti had what some people interpreted as a rough exterior, there was a person inside who was terribly torn between two worlds, American society and traditional Indian society, and it was difficult for her. Dipti really had a very kind heart and when she got to know you, she would literally bend over backwards for you. She really stood behind the people she cared about and went out of her way a many times to support her friends. Trust me on this one, her heart was in the right place.

It's been several years since I've even spoken to Dipti, yet her loss still leaves a sizeable hole in my heart. She will be missed. She will be remembered.

Farewell...

Special thanks to Mike Cleary for co-authoring this page with me

Mets game tailgate party	Mitch's Fairchild farewell lunch
Mets game tailgate party, 1991	Canoe / Camping Trip 1991