A very dear friend of Field Of Solitude, Chad Pender, was diagnosed with stage 4 neuro-endocrine cancer in July 2010. At the time it had metastasized to the liver, both lungs, and a spot on his spine. Chad went through almost fourteen months of dealing with this disease. He had some good days and some not so good days. With the love and support of his friends and family, Chad took things day-by-day, teaching us all what courage and strength were really all about.

     Chad loved music. He played drums and beamed with life whenever he was sitting behind his kit. Chad's taste in music ranged from hard rock and metal to country. Listening to music and going to see his favorite bands play live were especially happy times for him. When he was at a concert, the smile that was always on his face got even bigger.

     Chad was also a very good graphics artist. A big portion of the graphics work that makes up all of the themes on our forums was done by Chad. When I was building the current layout of Field Of Solitude, Chad would take on tasks of designing these themes and work until they were absolutely perfect. The work he delivered to me was amazing and the attention to detail was enough that it made this Marine happy to have him on the job.

     On September 2nd, 2011, Chad time here on Earth ended and he continued his life on the next level. Many people have been touched deeply by Chad and will miss him immensely. There may have been people in life who were as positive and totally genuine as Chad, but there never has been anyone more so. Chad, we will always remember you. We will remember you as a great friend and an amazing person. While we are all very sad that you are gone, we are just as much very happy that God chose to send you to us for the time we had together. We all pray that you are at peace and at least as happy in your current life as you were when you were here with us.