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DTC in Perspective: Remembering Amgen’s Marker Weigand

June 18, 2015 by Bob Ehrlich0
Bob Ehrlich
“I am honored to have known him.”
-Bob Ehrlich

Our colleague Marker Weigand passed away last week. Marker was a DTC colleague at Amgen who was stricken with ALS. He will be remembered by all who knew him as a wonderful person and loving family man. I am always shocked when someone so young passes prematurely. I knew Marker as a Facebook friend and as a DTC colleague. I used to see him regularly at the DTC National along with many other friends from Amgen.

His passing reminds me of how important our role is in developing cures for these horrible diseases. We usually see these diseases from afar and when a friend gets a rare life ending disease it hits hard. I remember Marker as one of the nicest people I met through my DTC experience. We honored Marker in 2010 as a top 25 DTC marketer. He was a well recognized industry leader.

When someone like Marker dies it reinforces the belief that what we all do is so important. We are part of an industry that is trying to cure disease made up of dedicated people just like Marker. His passing should remind us all that our role is not about market share but about saving lives. We sometimes get caught up in business metrics that are really not all that important. I am shocked and saddened that a young man like Marker was a victim of an insidious affliction like ALS.

I was not aware of Marker’s struggle until I was notified of his death this week. I am honored to have known him. His passing certainly gives me perspective on what is important in life. To my Amgen friends I express my condolences and will always have fond memories of Marker.

Author

Bob Ehrlich


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