An otherwise perfect finale for the three-day Dead & Company extravaganza at Golden Gate Park took a tragic turn Sunday. Some 60,000 fans were grooving to “They Love Each Other” when a disturbance rippled through the crowd.
"At first I heard shouting and saw people waving their arms and a guy on someone's shoulders waving frantically," Jill, a Marin resident who declined to share her full name, told The Standard through text messages. "Then I looked down about 15 feet behind me and saw a lifeless man receiving chest compressions." Paramedics swarmed the area where a man had collapsed in the crowd.
“We convinced ourselves that he survived, so we could try to move on from what we’d just experienced,” Jill said.
But Fred Cothard, a 54-year-old Deadhead, dad, and contractor from Michigan, had died.
Cothard collapsed while dancing with girlfriend Jody Leddy, she said in a Facebook post Monday. They had spent the previous 10 days together and had “professed our love for each other” on their trip to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Grateful Dead.
Her post included a selfie of the couple on the Polo Field just two hours before Cothard collapsed.
“I am blessed & honored to have been there with him every moment yesterday before, during & after his passing,” Leddy wrote. “I was holding him, talking to him about his kids, & kissing him until hours after the doctor pronounced him, until I got in touch with his daughter.”
Another Planet Entertainment produced the concert and hired Rock Medicine, a private company, to provide emergency medical care during the three days of shows. Rock Medicine did not respond to requests for comment.
“Our thoughts are with the individual’s family and loved ones,” Another Planet Entertainment said in a statement.
An obituary posted Tuesday on Legacy.com described Cothard as a master carpenter who owned and operated a construction and remodeling firm, as well as a devoted parent with a "deep love and passion for the Grateful Dead."
His twin children, Sadie and Sawyer, started a GoFundMe account to pay for their father’s funeral and other expenses.
“Whether you knew Fred well or only encountered him briefly, chances are he made a lasting impression,” the GoFundMe says. “The one thing we know for sure about our dad is that his love for us was endless, but his love for the Grateful Dead, and the Grateful Dead community meant almost as much as his love for us.”
Leddy issued a statement of appreciation to other fans.
“We appreciate the outpouring of support and kind words that we have received from thousands of Deadheads on social media,” she wrote.
Redditors offered support for grieving Dead fans, with some sharing wonder at the idea of the four winds blowing a faithful fan safely home.
“This was my first thought morbid as it is — when you gotta go, to go quickly and painlessly listening to your favorite music live is one hell of a blessing,” one Redditor said.
“He died amongst thousands of his closest friends with the sounds of the heavens welcoming him,” another said.
“If I had to die and move to the afterlife, it would be in the arms of my loved one while my favorite band is playing,” said another. “Your heart is heavy, because you care. They loved each other.”
In a Facebook post, Sandy Beghin offered comfort to Cothard’s friend Darlene Rasmussen: “What a way to go. Rest in song brother and I'm so sorry for the fam.”