It's my sad responsibility to let you all know that John Herbst (aka 5thGenDemocrat) passed away late Friday night. He was 53 years old. He had went into the hospital a week ago with breathing problems; the doctors later discovered he had advanced adrenal sarcoma throughout his entire body. He had been on a ventilator and in a medically-induced coma for a time, but was taken off those Friday evening by mutual consent of himself and his immediate family. John had made it clear that he did not wish to "linger".

John was an early member of DU, and he, along with davsand and Khephra, introduced me and countless others to this forum. As his name implies, he was a lifetime supporter of the Democratic Party.

Many of you know that John organized an annual social event called Funday. In fact, he was working on Funday XVI when he entered the hospital for the last time. His partner, Polly, and John's closest friends are going to follow John's wishes and hold Funday XVI on June 12, 2010, as a tribute and memorial to him. The family will be organizing another memorial service for John later in the summer.

If anyone has any questions, they can contact me.