Half a Minute Makes a World of Difference

Mike and Brenda Patrick have come a long way from their origins in Brazil, Indiana, including this adventure atop Wyoming’s Medicine Bow Peak in 2018.

At the time, Mike Patrick didn’t realize he was having the most important 30-second conversation of his life.

Sitting in high school chemistry class in Brazil, Indiana, Patrick learned a friend was attending Rose-Hulman in the fall. That’s when Patrick decided he would apply to the small engineering college too. 

The rest is history.

“That short conversation and the resulting decision had a greater impact on my life than any other event I have experienced,” says Patrick, now living in Aurora, Colorado, with his wife Brenda, his high school sweetheart. “We recognize that if I hadn’t gone to Rose, we probably wouldn’t have had the life we’ve had.” In gratitude, the Patricks have included a legacy gift to Rose-Hulman as part of their smart estate planning.  

But making it through Rose-Hulman was far from easy. Like a lot of first-year students, Patrick quickly discovered he had never really been pushed academically before. High school chemistry had been a place where he could catch up on much-needed sleep; but “I definitely didn’t sleep in chemistry class when I got to Rose.” 

While Patrick was “sweating bullets” academically early on, it was the very thing that attracted him to Rose—smaller classes and personal attention—that would save him. 

“The small classes and the ability to get help from the faculty … that allowed me to keep my head above water while I learned how to study,” he recalls.

While virtually all of his professors played a big role in his eventual success, Patrick singles out a few for special mention: chemical engineering professors Sam C. Hite and Noel Moore and chemistry professor Theodore Sakano.

“I spent a lot of time [in Moore’s office] trying to save my skin,” Patrick remembers.

Mike and Brenda Patrick rang in the New Year in 2016 by hiking around Bierstadt Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Another important factor in Patrick’s academic success was serving as a resident assistant in the freshman residence halls during his junior and senior years, he says. “I think that also helped me become a better student.” 

While at Rose, Patrick definitely learned how to study. He made his way to the Dean’s List by his senior year and was soon facing a raft of job offers, including three from Dow Chemical—one of the top companies for chemical engineering majors at the time. But, being a small-town boy from a college of about only 1,000 students, Patrick was drawn to A.E. Staley Manufacturing Company in Decatur, Illinois, a much smaller outfit that was soon to enjoy rapid growth.

His career would take him to other companies and other locations, including Chicago and eventually to Colorado—where he and Brenda, a retired teacher, enjoy hiking in the Rockies and biking on a regular basis. But the whole journey began at Rose-Hulman.

“I firmly believe that by attending Rose I was able to maximize my capabilities and opportunities. It allowed Brenda and me to have a comfortable life, and we feel it’s important to give back to ensure the Institute can continue to help its graduates be prepared to become leaders in whatever fields they choose.” Mike and Brenda have generously chosen to include Rose-Hulman in their estate plan as a beneficiary of their revocable trust.