Patrick reportedly says wife may return to work soon
The Springfield Republican reported yesterday that Governor Deval Patrick said his wife, Diane, who has been undergoing treatment for exhaustion and depression, is doing better and is hoping to return to work this week.
The governor said in March that he was curtailing his schedule to spend more time with his wife and their family.
The Springfield Republican said yesterday that Deval Patrick told a Chamber of Commerce breakfast meeting in Amherst on Friday morning that his wife "is stronger, better, and she's hoping to go back to work next week."
An aide to the governor could not immediately confirm the report last night.
According to the paper, Deval Patrick told the group his wife has been getting more mail than he does and the outpouring "has been just extraordinary."
Diane Patrick, 55, who is a partner at the Boston law firm Ropes & Gray, said in November that she intended to be more prominent publicly than previous gubernatorial spouses.
On March 10, the governor's office released a statement that said "The family asks for the prayers and understanding of the public. We also ask respect for the family's privacy at this difficult time."
She had not been highly visible since his inaugural appearances in January.
After her husband's election victory in November, Diane Patrick had expressed uncertainty about how to handle her new role as governor's wife.
"I almost feel like I should go out and try to find a book, 'First Ladies for Dummies,' " she said in an interview the day after the election. "The people I've asked who seem to have some sense of it say, 'Look, this is something you have to figure out on your own with Deval.' "
The announcement about Diane Patrick came in a difficult time for the new administration, which had faced questions about the governor's call to a financial institution on behalf of a controversial subprime lender, on whose board he once sat.
Diane Patrick was an asset to her husband during the gubernatorial campaign, and was popular with his political supporters. With her own high-level career achievements and her strong partnership with her husband, she was seen as a model for political spouses.
Deval Patrick had faced criticism over having a $72,000-a-year chief of staff for his wife, but that position was abolished about a week after the announcement about her treatment was made. 