A San Francisco man was remembered Thursday night in the Mission District. He died after suddenly collapsing at Golden Gate Park.
Gary Hobish created a name for himself in the music industry as a longtime sound engineer for bands throughout the years.
Hobish was remembered Thursday night at the Make-Out Room in San Francisco with family and friends sharing memories and t-shirts after the musician died suddenly over the weekend.
“Gary was a fan of music. Gary mastered literally every San Francisco band. You can go back to the 80s, I mean, even beyond that,” said San Francisco resident Parker Gibbs.
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Hobish was taking part in his weekly swing dancing session with friends at Golden Gate Park, when he suddenly collapsed and hit his head on the way down.
The cause of the collapse is still unknown. Tova Shinall, the victim’s sister, told NBC Bay Area that it could be tied to a genetic heart condition.
Ambulances were called immediately to the scene, but Tim O’Brien, one of Hobish’s friends sprinted to the nearby de Young Museum to see if they had a defibrillator.
O’Brien said the staffer located a defibrillator but stopped short of giving it to him.
“I realized, OK, this stranger comes running in, out of breath. Needs a medical device. I understand this. Here’s my phone, here’s my watch. Here’s everything out of my pockets,” O’Brien said.
The staffer decided to run it by his supervisor and five minutes later, denying the request.
“Here is the staffer walking away with his AED in hand. I took a photo because I was in such disbelief and shock about what was happening," he said.
A de Young Museum spokesperson said they are deeply saddened by the incident and shared a different explanation by releasing the following statement:
“When asked for help after Mr. Hobish collapsed, staff at the de Young Museum tried to determine the best response they could make within museum policy as they understood it, running out to the park to assess what was happening. When they reached the scene, within five minutes of the initial request, they found that an ambulance was already at the scene, which they informed the individual who had made the request.”
O’Brien was unaware of a staffer went to the scene and he said it wasn’t the right move.
“Them going out to assess the situation was a lethal choice,” he said.
Shinall said the museum was just following protocols and now wants to focus on the unexpected loss of her brother.
“I will miss him a lot. He was just somebody who was very special,” she said.
