We will miss a good friend

[Charlie]

In case some did not know we lost a very good friend from this forum , Brad Bradstreet has went on to work with God
Brad loved the OBS very much ,he helped so many people out on the forum with things they asked for help with .
He loved to take pictures of the mountain and of the OBS tower . He loved spending time with the crew and taking new people on the OBS tour and hopes the would become a member , most did .
We had so much fun volunteering for two weeks to cook for the crew and we were talking about when we were going to do it again .
Brad was also a trustee for the OBS and loved helping them out more then you know
Brad will be looking down on us as we hike up for STP to make sure we are all safe
Post some thing you remember the best time you had or talked about with him

So every time you stand back and look at Mt Washington take a moment as remember a moment you had with Brad and your day will be a good one
Rest in peace my twin
Love Charlie

[mtruman]

Thanks Charlie. Brad was such a wonderful person and a good friend to so many of us. He was the kind of person that would give you the shirt off his back - even if he didn't know you. I first "met" Brad here when I joined the forum in late 2007. He was one of the first people to respond to my early posts. We didn't meet in person until the following summer at Seek the Peak. You, he and Corey were at the Lion Head trail junction and we of course immediately recognized you. Over the next almost four years Brad and I became very good friends. He was an amazing man and the world is a poorer place today after his passing. Rest in peace Brad.

Brad, Charlie and Corey on the Lion Head trail at 2008 Seek the Peak.

[Tim&Val]

Tim and I met Brad about half-way up Lion's Head on our first Seek-the-Peak back in 2007. It was my first time hiking MW from Pinkham, too. After introductions, he convinced us that was just HAD to get involved in the MWO forum online!! I signed up soon afterwards. It is five years later and I have so many friends that I attribute directly to that chance meeting and Brad's encouraging words to get involved in the hiking community online.

On that hike, the battery on my point-and-shoot camera died before we even got started. Brad, on the other hand, always carried a HUGE camera on these hikes! Wow. Looked heavier than my entire pack! Anyways, after the hike, he sent me a few photos of his day, since he'd taken the same route that we did, and I posted them so my family could see what we had hiked. It was even better because we were IN the photos instead of behind the scenes. Thank you again, Brad!

[KathyC]

There are so many things that I'd like to say without rambling, I'll try my best.

I had been reading these boards for years until I joined, when I finally did Brad was the very first person to greet me in my first thread. http://www.mountwashington.org/forum...llo&highlight= I felt wecomed by everyone.

On these boards the last few years we have to come kind of know each other through here. Last year when the get totogethers started they wanted to find an area around here, Brad and I had a few phone conversations about where because I wanted to find a good place. I felt so silly on the phone sometimes, but he was kind about it. And then I met him again in Mystic with many others, those two outings were really fun to put faces with the names. We all got to talk about what we have in common, our Love of the Whites.

Last summer we started messaging quite a bit because he knew that at somepoint my intention would be to move to that area. As busy as he was, he would always answer questions and give advise, even sending me information about jobs in the area. Walter liked him a lot too, we would actually find ourselves saying, I wonder what Brad would think...

In December when he was doing Wreaths Across America he stayed here over night, we were Happy to have him. We don't have a big apartment, but we tried to make him compfortable. My cat usually hides when she doesn't know someone, but she took right to him, sitting by him and rubbing his feet. I have an electric fire place that looks pretty real, not sure if Brad ever saw one because he was quite amazed by it. LOL. He admired all of the artwork that I have from the Framed Art store up there, I try to surround myself with NH, he laughed because not too many people from NJ would have a giant moose painting on their wall.

We got to talk quite a bit with questions back and forth. During the conversation Walt and I talked about going up there one weekend and making things "Official" between us. We didin't know when, but we talked about if Brad were available when we decided, if he could come and snap a few pictures, he said he'd be thrilled.

He spoke about the love of his family, his wife Linds kept the home fires burning while he traveled and that she is the Greatest Cook. Also some of the places he's been and the traveling back and forth he had done and that he was a Man in Love with a Mountain.

He had come to be a part of our everyday lives through FB, he's at DD having coffee, he's in another state, he's here or there doing this or that. Snapping photo's a long the way, he was always on the go taking all of us with him on his adventures.

On one of his drives around the state he stopped at the Lower Falls on the Swift and snapped this picture for me because he knew it was one of my favorite spots, it always makes me smile. He was just that kind of man, I am saving it and calling it "A Gift From Brad".

A gift from Brad Bradstreet.jpg

It feels like someone blew out bright candle, I'm going to miss him so much, God rest his Soul and be with his family.

[Snow Miser]

Thanks for starting this memorial thread Charlie! Brad was such a wonderful person. I second Mark's statement that he was the type of person who would give you the shirt off his back. He was always willing to help anyone, whether here on the forums, or anywhere else. I had the pleasure of meeting Brad for the first time during Seek the Peak 2009 at The Weather Discovery Center during registration. He was doing one of his favorite things, taking photos of the event as hikers were picking up their goodie bags, when I introduced myself to him. It truly was like meeting a celebrity. From that time on, I always enjoyed his company. Whether it was at one of the many forums luncheons we all had, helping him with Wreathes Across America, or just a quick breakfast at the diner in Bridgton. Rest in peace Brad! You will truly be missed by so many of the lives you touched.


Chris, Cindy, Brad, Charlie and Bob during Seek the Peak 2010.

[CHRIS]

I remember the first time I met Brad. It was at a little breakfast place near the Auto Road. My wife and I met him there one morning to talk over real estate. We had a great breakfast and talked about everything including of course photography. He really was an incredable man. He made you feel so comfortable like he knew you for years. I had been talking with him on this forum for a while before I actually met him in person. After that breakfast I knew we were going to be great friends. I am so glad I actually got to hike with him in 2010 for STP. We were a crazy foursome. It was Brad,myself,Charlie and my wife Cindy and it was and incredable yet slow hike Brad was such a patient man. He told me three little words that day that I will never forget and actually used in last years STP. "slow and steady".

Brad and I had becaome very close friends. We took many many adventures together that I will always cheerish. He always had a secret dirt road someplace and would take off down just to show me a good shooting spot or a covered bridge. I remember him taking me to a Wolf Sanctuary. It was so amazing to be in the Wolf cages with him. Of course Brad always had me cracking up. Brad had one Wolf nipping at his pocket. Well wouldn't you know Brad is the only man I know that would go into a Wolf cage with dog biscuits in his pocket. Seems he forgot them there from his dog Sandy.

The best of course is going with him on the sunrise drives up Mount Washington. Brad seemed to light up whenever he had a chance to go to the summit and I am glad I got to share that with him. Brad considered Charlie and myself his Brothers. We are the Twinlets. Three identacal twins. Brad took me into his family and invited me into his home. He always said I had a bed in Maine in the bunk room.
Brad is gone but his lagacy will live on forever. Because of him there are so many people from all over the place that are now really good friends.I will miss our phone calls that lasted sometimes an hour and a half as you drove from one state to the other.

R.I.P Brad. My Idol,My friend,My Twinlet and most of all My BROTHER. I love you and I will miss you so much that words cannot explain!!!

[mtruman]

I just finished writing this tribute post to Brad on my blog. Had trouble keeping the tears off the keyboard. Thank you so much for starting this Charlie. There is no better way that we can pay tribute to the memory of our friend than by sharing our memories of him.

http://theramblingsblog.blogspot.com...e-to-brad.html

[Charlie]

Thank you all he was special and we need to keep what he has shown us going to help others the way he did

Chris nice picture

[Breeze]

I did not know Brad well or closely, but one didn't need to be a best friend to recognize his kindness, his joy in this life, and his gift for spreading that joy.

I would see him at the Toll House on the Auto Road so very frequently; he was truly " a frequent flier." As an Obs Trustee, he of course had free passage, and certainly knew how to bypass any waiting line, but Brad WOULD always wait in line, stop, and chat, however briefly, call us by name, and was always appreciative and generous of spirit. He always brought smiles.

I'll dearly miss Brad. I'm quite saddened and stunned that I won't " see" him again in person.

I know I'll see his spirit.

Breeze ( Sue)

[RI Swamp Yankee]

The world is a better place because of Brad Bradstreet. He will be missed

If you see a Sun Dog, think of Brad. tis-time-for-sun-pillars-and-sun-dogs