“The demons could wait no longer.”
Lynne Patton is the Vice President of The Eric Trump Foundation & Senior Assistant to Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump & Donald Trump Jr. She was thrust onto the political scene after making a beautiful video denouncing Trump’s critics who dared to call him a “racist” or “bigot”. She didn’t ask Donald J. Trump or any of the Trump family members for their blessing…she just made the video. The video went viral shortly after it was posted and has been viewed almost 4 million times. (We included the video at the bottom of the page.) Lynne has been a force in the Trump campaign ever since. She spoke at the RNC convention and has been spotted with several of the Trump children at various events across the country supporting her boss, Donald J. Trump.
Lynne posted a touching and extremely important story on her Instagram account that so moved us, we decided to share it with our followers.
There are not enough people speaking up about the horrendous health care our veterans have been subjected to for decades. Trump has made no secret that he is determined to fix the broken VA health care system run by incompetent, and in many cases, negligent employees of a disgusting, inept, government-run program. Lynn Patton addresses Trump’s commitment to our nation and to our veterans, who deserve so much more than what we are giving back to them in this beautiful letter that she posted, after being contacted by friends who had just lost their son, a veteran who was suffering from PTSD to suicide:
Sometimes people ask me if I ever regret coming forward – speaking out – making that video back in May. My answer is always the same: No, of course not. Or I relay to them the fact that I couldn’t stay silent about the false narrative of bigotry any longer. Or quite simply, I tell people that all did was genuinely tell the truth about this great family as I know it to be. I never expected that the letter I wrote would be anything more than a personal Facebook post with a few friendly comments. Maybe even a few negative ones too. But then a very talented friend insisted on turning that letter into a video & here we are.
Everything I’ve ever said, posted, written, tweeted, spoken & believed about this family is 100% true. I never expected that simply being honest would result in being asked to speak in front of 24 million people at the Republican National Convention. I never expected that simply being honest would lead to tens of thousands of Twitter followers (good & bad). I never expected that simply being honest would result in being part of a movement. But I would be lying if I didn’t admit that it’s been a tough few months. Tough physically. Tough mentally. Tough emotionally. It’s been a lot of traveling. It’s been a lot of laughs. It’s been a lot of tears. I’ve lost a few friends (who clearly weren’t true friends) and, unbeknownst to most, even some of my own family members have ceased communication. I barely see my own boyfriend anymore. A person with whom I have lived for the past 11 years. We are two ships literally passing in the night. Oftentimes, too tired & exhausted to even converse. But yesterday, I received a devastating reminder of why we do what we do. A reminder of why I don’t regret speaking out – coming forward – sharing a very private part of my life on a very public stage.
Yesterday, I received a devastating reminder of why I’m honored to know & love this family. A reminder of why I walk through the doors of Trump Tower with a smile on my face each & every day. A reminder of why it’s an honor to crisscross this country alongside this great man & his family in the pursuit of the greatest office in the world. In pursuit of the betterment of this country. In pursuit of a safer, stronger, more respected & prosperous America. Yesterday, I received a message that my friend’s little brother had committed suicide. He was 32 years old.
Normally, I would not be sharing something so personal in such an impersonal forum, but I do so at the behest & blessing of his family. Even so, it took me nearly 24 hours to find the strength to write these words. I have no idea how my friend & her incredibly brave family are even functioning, yet alone finding the strength to email me during a time of such unfathomable grief. But then they explained to me that they had no choice. They explained to me that their collective grief, frustration, fury, anger, confusion, sadness and utter betrayal compelled them to contact me. ME. On the same day they were faced with the painful task of burying their son, their brother, their uncle, cousin — they reached out to me. You see, my friend’s little brother was a veteran. Air Force. Handsome. Brave. Loved. My friend’s little brother was a veteran who had been battling the overwhelming demons of depression & post traumatic stress disorder for several years. Alone. Without professional help. And when he finally did find the courage to seek professional help, the VA told him there was a six month waiting list. Six. Month. Waiting. List. But unfortunately, the demons could wait no longer. Instead, my friend’s little brother chose to take his own life on September 11, 2016. So you see, I have no choice but to post about his death today. I have no choice but to make this tragedy political. Because it is. Plain & simple. But more importantly, I have no choice but to make his death political because his devastated family has specifically asked me to do so.
In his honor. So that no other veteran is turned away during their time of need. They told me that this country now needs Trump to lead us more than ever. That this country now needs a leader who will bring respect, honor & well-deserved attention back to our military, so that these brave soldiers don’t feel dejected & alone – ridiculed & angry – depressed & confused. That said, it is now MY honor to work for a man who will personally ensure that the VA’s antiquated, lackadaisical, reckless, reprehensible and irresponsible system of care is overhauled & relaunched becomes one of his very first acts of office.
There are people who have been in Washington DC for over 30 years & done absolutely nothing to fix this disgraceful system. NOTHING. Nothing at all to change this unacceptable process. One of them is running for President of the United States. So yes, yesterday, I was reminded why the choice for my boss to leave his company – leave an extremely successful & comfortable existence – was easy for him.
Yesterday, I was reminded why the shockingly vile, hateful & abusive comments I receive on social media mean nothing to me.
Yesterday, I was reminded that this election is much bigger than I am – than us – than you – than him. That it’s much more important than we could ever fathom – to this country, to our veterans, to the unemployed, to the crime victims of illegal immigrants, to our police officers, to our active duty military & to the heartbroken families of the same.
This election is, quite simply, a matter of life & death. And today, I, for one, am now personally determined to ensure that my friend’s little brother – and his 22 military peers who take their lives each & every day – did not die in vain.
Lynne Patton,
?? #DeplorableAndProud
Here is Lynne Patton’s video:
