Dempsey’s departure: The aftermath

As of late Friday afternoon, Dr. Derek Shepherd was still dead and if you thought “Grey’s Anatomy” fans were going to just get over it, you were wrong.

Way wrong.

A very small sampling of comments from the Sun Journal’s Facebook page, which revealed that Patrick Dempsey’s beloved character was no more:

Donna Coburn, Buckfield: “The show is done as far as I’m concerned!”

Cindy Akthar, Norway: “At least hes OK in real life, thank God.”

Andrea Obrien: “R.I.P Derek Shepherd! You will be missed by me… The show will never be the same without Derek and Meredith! Bummed! Everyone is dropping off like flies… Sloan, Lexie, Christina… Now Derek! Wow.”

Rina Thibeault, Auburn: “All I can say is by killing Dr. McDreamy they also killed ‘Grey’s Anatomy.'”

Linda Twitchell, Lewiston: “Hopefully he comes back to Maine. I cried last night it was such a good ending for Patrick but it won’t be the same.”

Jackie Mckee, East Pittston: “I watched it and was very sad it happened like this!”

Had enough? Tough.

It was a local and nationwide buzz of prime-time drama Friday, just hours after the handsome and charming Dr. Derek met his demise. The good doctor’s obituary came in the form of nonstop media coverage and social chatter. There was even a collection of photos depicting people weeping over the news. We kid you not.

Other celebrities were weighing in. Fans were bemoaning the loss anywhere they could. Publications of all kinds were offering up tributes to the dearly departed.

In the Lewiston-Auburn area, some of those fans were lambasting the Sun Journal for carrying the news without a spoiler alert.

“Thanks, Sun Journal, for spoiling this for whomever couldn’t watch this tonight,” one local woman wrote on Facebook. “Seriously, not everyone watches something the night it airs.”

Some were more pragmatic, wondering how the departure of Dempsey’s character might affect the Dempsey Center in Lewiston and all the good it does for the victims of cancer.

Not to worry, says Wendy Tardif, executive director of the center.

“Like most nonprofits, we rely on individual donors and foundations as well as the proceeds from fundraising events to sustain our good work,” Tardif said on Friday. “We do not anticipate Patrick’s departure from ‘Grey’s’ will impact the Dempsey Center or the Dempsey Challenge. We wish him continued success and look forward to seeing him in October!”

And there were questions, so many questions. What led to this earth-shattering move by the show creators? What will Dempsey do next? Will he be OK? Is there anything we can do?

Lewiston’s Rick Hudson, for one, was keeping calm in this time of crisis.

“Patrick Dempsey chose to leave the show and move on to other things,” he wrote. “I’ve never watched the show so no emotional statement coming from me. It was simply a career move for him, and best of luck to our Fellow Mainer!”

We think Dr. Shepherd would want it that way.

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