EUGENE PATTERSON

Eugene A. Patterson, age 91, a long-time resident of Neenah, passed away on June 25, 2022, at Froedtert/Holy Family Memorial Medical Center in Manitowoc after several years of suffering from heart and kidney disease.

            Gene was born July 19, 1930, in Oshkosh, the only child of the late Arnold J. and Irene M. (Hamann) Patterson. He was raised in Menasha, where his many friends called him “Jeep.” He graduated from Menasha High School in 1948 and, in 1952, graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he earned a B.S., majoring in economics and political science.

            After graduation, Gene was hired by West Bend Aluminum Company where he worked in the sales and marketing department. While there, he met Elsie M. Edge, who was also employed at West Bend. Gene and Elsie married on September 25, 1954, and raised their children, Susan and Jeffrey, in Menasha and then Neenah.

            Gene was a salesman at heart and eager to have a territory where his own ability would determine his success. So, he was happy to accept a sales position in 1955 with General Electric in Northeastern Wisconsin. The new job allowed him to return to Menasha, which was very important to him. In 1956, he joined Schlafer Supply Company in Appleton, where he worked for 27 years in industrial sales. His customers were located throughout much of Wisconsin and included paper mills, machine tool and construction companies, and foundries. Gene was recognized as a leader in his field for more than just his sales production; he was respected by his peers and customers for his product knowledge, honesty, and ethics.

            Until he was 16, Gene and his parents lived in or on the edge of downtown Menasha, including 10 years in the Clovis house, where his parents were live-in caretakers of Melissa Clovis and her adult son Arthur. The house was eventually torn down to make way for Germania Hall. Gene considered downtown Menasha his playground, one which taught him many of life's lessons. He knew the merchants to whom he delivered newspapers and The Saturday Evening Post and Liberty magazines. During junior high school, Gene had a shoe-shine stand in the Hotel Menasha barber shop, where he met many of the area's prominent industrial leaders. They treated him well and tipped him generously, and he always remembered them fondly.

            As a young man, Gene played baseball and fast pitch softball throughout the state and was named to several All-Star teams. He loved to hunt duck, pheasant, and deer, and he had lots of stories to tell about his adventures in the wild. He was a proud member of Boy Scout Troop 14, and supported the organization throughout his life. Though he was underage during World War II, Gene worked at the Marathon Corporation mill when there was a shortage of manpower. During his college summers, he dug ditches by hand, installing water mains and services for the Menasha Electric and Water Utilities; he also drove truck for Railway Express. During the college school year, he worked at the University Book Store in Madison.

            In 1945, shortly after his confirmation at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Neenah, Gene's parents and several other families established St. Timothy Lutheran Church in Menasha. Gene was the youngest member to sign the charter. He recalled many Sundays helping his father set up the altar at the Valley Theater and other locations for several years before construction of the new church was completed. Gene, Elsie, and their children were members until they moved to Neenah in 1968 and joined St. Mark's Lutheran Church. At St. Mark's, Gene was an active committee member, council member, and president of the congregation.

            In 1975, Gene and Elsie joined the Menasha and Century dance clubs, and Ridgeway Country Club. Gene was an avid golfer for decades. He enjoyed playing tournaments around the state and traveling to Tucson and The Masters with his lifelong best friend, Paul Verbrick, and to Southern courses in the spring with his Ridgeway buddies, well-known as “The Herd.” He enjoyed competing, and he won his share of events and tournaments. Gene served two terms as president of Ridgeway and retained his membership long enough to become an honorary member.

            Gene's interest in sports included the Green Bay Packers, and he became a season ticket holder in 1956. He attended games with his father at the old field on the grounds of Green Bay's East High School, long before Lambeau Field was built. He proudly recalled having met Curly Lambeau, George Halas, and Don Hutson. He also closely followed the Brewer and Badger teams. For many years, Gene bowled in the Builders League at Hahn's Lanes, Appleton, and in a second league at Hendy's Lanes, Menasha.

            By virtue of the education and mentoring he received from his college professors, Gene acquired a deep knowledge of business and investing. Gene had a lifelong appreciation of the education he received at UW-Madison and of the sacrifices his parents made so he could obtain it. After his retirement in 1982, he had time to manage his own investments. Throughout his life, he thoroughly read several daily newspapers and numerous financial periodicals and maintained an interest in world affairs and the marketplace.
            Retirement allowed Gene time for another favorite activity -- traveling. He and Elsie visited all 50 states before engaging in foreign travel, which took them to 26 countries. During annual vacations in Arizona, Gene developed an interest in Southwestern art, which he and Elsie collected. The vacations that meant the most to him were those when he and Elsie would take a grandchild on a trip as a high school graduation gift. He loved introducing them to places such as Alaska, Santa Fe, San Francisco, New York City, and Washington, D.C. Sadly, ill health prevented him from sharing that special time with his youngest grandchild, Maureen.

            Gene acquired a love of music from his father, who, during Gene's teen years, sang in a barber shop quartet. Gene often sang along during practice sessions and occasionally subbed for an absent singer, which gave him the opportunity to appear on the quartet's weekly radio show on WHBY. Throughout his life, he loved music in all its forms, especially live performances, which ran the gamut from Jerry Lee Lewis to Sons of the Pioneers to Bourbon Street to Broadway, and included Pavarotti and Itzhak Perlman. Gene's last concert was Harry Connick Jr.'s appearance in Appleton. He loved it!
            Gene was a proud, supportive, and loving son, husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather who always put family first. He was deeply loved and respected in return. He is survived by Elsie, his wife of nearly 68 years; his daughter Susan (Leon) Hoffmann, Door County; his son Jeffrey (Karen), Manitowoc; six grandchildren: Nicole Hoffmann; Britton (Charlie) Domer; Matthew (Elizabeth McGoey) Hoffmann; Benjamin (Jessica) Patterson; Cameron (Kelsey Dorgan) Patterson; and Maureen Patterson; plus seven great-grandchildren: Emery and Willa Domer; Julian and Miles Hoffmann; Harper and Aubrey Patterson; and Callen Patterson.

            Our gratitude goes to the Froedtert/Holy Family Memorial Medical Center Critical Care Unit and to Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice. Both teams worked with care and diligence to ease Gene's pain and his passing.

            Funeral service will be held Tuesday, July 19, 2022, (which would have been his 92nd birthday) at St. Timothy Lutheran Church, 473 Seventh Street, Menasha. Visitation begins at 10 a.m. and concludes when the service begins at 11:30 a.m., with Pastor David Skarsten officiating. A luncheon will follow. There will be a private burial service for the family at Oak Hill Cemetery, Neenah.

            In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to either the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose or St. Timothy Lutheran Church.