To all who commented
Partner is appreciative of and was touched by all your comments. Thank you all.
I have an email from him that in a few paragraphs describes the journey his companion took through his life; I wish I had the chops to write like he wrote that. I’d copy/paste the whole thing here just for the traffic it would bring, if it was any less intensely personal.

Tell him that we’re thinking about him and are so sorry for his loss.