Pat Patterson
Maintenance Technician, Walnut Woods
Hometown
New London, Ohio
What I do at Metro Parks and what I love about it
As a Park Technician I’m very busy with repair and maintenance tasks, including painting, mowing the fields and taking down trees. What I love about my job is the chance to problem solve and to learn how to operate different equipment, such as a post hole digger on a skid steer. I also get to learn something new about nature every day.
My favorite Metro Parks activity
Without a doubt, it’s fly-fishing at Clear Creek Metro Park. The creek is stocked with trout in fall, so I like to fly-fish then, but also in the spring. I would often go fly-fishing there twice a month, for at least four hours at a time. But now, with a new addition to my family, I may not get the time to do it that often!
My favorite Metro Parks story that includes a positive guest interaction
Rather than just one story, it’s more about daily interactions I have with guests at Walnut Woods Metro Park. At least three or four times each week, someone will come up to me and have positive things to say about the park and will thank me and other team members for what we do to keep the parks in such great condition.
Something to share about guest service and creating a positive experience
Interactions with our guests also give us the chance to thank them, and to let them know that we’re here for them. We can cultivate positive relationships with our guests when we say hello, ask how their day is or if they need help or directions.
If I could go anywhere in the world and time and money were not a concern…
I would go back to live in Truckee, California. It was expensive to live there, but I’d be in my element, snowboarding down the mountains. My wife and I used to do that four times a week when we lived there, and during our first winter we had 78 feet of snow!
Life news to share
I’m a new dad to my four-month-old son, Levi. Until he came into the world, I never realized there was an empty spot in my heart, and it’s the greatest feeling in the world.
Three fun facts about me and my family
• I’m one of four siblings, and we’re all born TEN years apart. My eldest sister is 53, my next sister is 43, I’m about to turn 33, and my younger sister is turning 23.
• One of my hobbies is to build musical instruments, particularly acoustic guitars, and I love bluegrass, folk and Americana music.
• Before I went to Hocking College, I went to Columbus College of Art & Design (CCAD) and majored in glass-blowing and ceramics.
My favorite food and dessert
I love to make cheeseburgers! I grind my own meat, chuck eye roast and bacon, add my blend of special flavorings, mold into 3-inch patties and get the grill going. For dessert, I enjoy chocolate malt milk shakes at United Dairy Farmers (UDF).
If I had just 60 seconds to share why I love working at Metro Parks, here’s what I’d say
I get to work outside every day in a beautiful park alongside others who also love the outdoors. Everyone on the team here is a part of the Metro Parks family.
Pat Patterson was talking to Communications Coordinator, Virginia Gordon