This page last updated on 02/11/2003

We regret to inform you that sleep activist Kathleen Chittenden died on January 8, 2000.   During the four years that I knew her, Kathleen was an inspiration to me.  She was tireless in her efforts to help gain more awareness of sleep apnea and other sleep disorders.  While she had been active in the field before I ever met her, I definitely took notice of her in May of 1996, when we both happened to attend a discussion session on working with primary care physicians to increase the number of sleep disorders patients being diagnosed and treated.  At one point Kathleen was infuriated with the attitude of the physicians. She stood up and lambasted them verbally for ignoring one of their most precious resources for getting the word out -- their own diagnosed, treated patients!

During the Great American SleepWalk, she was walking through one of the lower hallways of the Russell Senate Office Building.  Spotting a large security guard, who had virtually no visible neck, and who was nodding a bit at his post, she immediately whipped out a copy of her Sleep Apnea Questionnaire and handed it to him, recommending that he answer the questions and then schedule a visit to a sleep doctor, because she was certain that he had sleep apnea.

In 1997, I met Kathleen again in San Francisco, down in the lower level of the hotel, looking for a package that had not been delivered to her yet. She had already been talking to one of the managers in the hotel and told me that she had convinced him about the dangers of sleep disorders, to the point that he had promised to have all of the employees under his command to take the questionnaire. 

We met again in 1998, in New Orleans, where Kathleen was speaking to one of the sessions of the sleep techs convention. In fact, that is the meeting where I first picked up the "I Love My CPAP - But" handout and asked her about putting it on this website.

In 1999, Kathleen was too ill to attend the annual sleep meeting, and I found myself missing her.  The meeting seemed so quiet without her!  In the latter half of the year I was unable to contact her or reach anyone who knew her condition, so I began answering the questions myself that were directed to "AskKathleen".  I heard about her death after the fact, but I wanted to post this small memorial to her sleep awareness efforts.

Some called her pushy; others said she was brash; others said she was irritating.   But Kathleen got "in your face" for a good reason -- she wanted to be sure that you knew about sleep disorders, especially sleep apnea.  She used her personal experiences and her ability to talk to anyone at any level, to get the word out about sleep.  Her voice and her presence will be missed by those of us who knew her.

Additional memorial comments from Barbara Shoup:

To Kathleen:

Yesterday I met a stranger...Today this stranger is my friend.

Had I not taken the time to say hello, or return a smile, or shake a hand, or listen, I would not have known this person. Yesterday would have turned into today and our chance meeting would be gone.

Yesterday I hugged someone very dear to me. Today they are gone... and tomorrow will not bring them back. Wouldn't it be nice if we all knew tomorrow would be here? But this is not to be, so take the time TODAY to give a hug, a smile, and an "I love you."

Kathleen, when we think of you we will:

Smile at a stranger
Listen to someone's heart
Drop a coin where a child can find it
Learn something new, then teach it to someone
Tell someone we're thinking of them
Hug a loved one
Not hold a grudge
Not be afraid to say, "I'm sorry"
Look a child in the eye and tell them how great they are
Not kill that spider in our house, he's just lost so we'll show him the way out
Look beyond the face of a person into their heart
Make a promise, and keep it
Call someone, for no other reason than to just say, "Hi!"
Show kindness to an animal
Stand up for what we believe in
Smell the rain
Feel the breeze
Listen to the wind
Use all our senses to their fullest; cherish all our TODAYS

Today you were thought about by me.
Good bye, dear friend.
Barbara

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