i went through every grade with Mike, He was always such a pleasant good natured person,

Mike was a good friend at Fairview, who practically “adopted “ my parents . Such a kind and caring person . So many memories- the mushroom hunting on the farm, Mike fixing steak and eggs the morning after parties at the farm, the all night penny ante poker parties at the house on Main Street, the ‘Spin the Bottle” game at parties at his house when we were Freshmen at Fairview. How many of us spent the night at Mike’s house the night before the first day of school our Senior Year? Do you remember stealing the watermelon from the fruit stand and eating it at 2:00 in the morning? Then walking in the Senior Parade to LHS. The last time I saw Mike was at our 25th class reunion. I made plans to visit him in Carmel, California the next Spring. But he was gone by then. So sudden. I visit his gravesite 2 or 3 times a year to pay my respects and say hello. Attached to his headstone is a protected photo of Mike with his one-of-a kind smile.Every time I open the plastic cover and look at his photo, I swear I can hear him laughing…….

Although I had no contact with Mike after graduation, I still remember him fondly having a HUGE impact on my life in High School.  I always looked forward to seeing him and the other saxaphone players in band at the end of the school day.  Kathy Carr, Joyce Pasel, Jack Goris, Darlene Polen, Randy Hitchens and others were part of that select group.  Mike had an experience with The Foreign Study League (traveling in Europe in a study group, earning credits for either high school or college).  I was eager to do this as well and having his experience as a model, I was able to convince my parents to let me do it.  That turned into a lifetime joy of traveling and sharing that joy with my children, which might not ever have happened if not for Mike.  

Mike was also a good friend of mine...as he was to many! I still miss him to this day. Thanks to him and Jonathan Justice, I was able to purchase his Farm a few years back. There will be a Patterson Memorial Bridge dedication and party taking place on the creek near the old campsite at the Old Patterson Farm the afternoon/evening of October 21, 2021. Recent videos of the Farm can be seen at "The Old Patterson Farm" channel on Youtube.

Michael Wayne,(he was always Michael Wayne to me not Mike), and I met each other in kindergarten at Jefferson school.  I had broken my leg just days before school started and he would push me home from school in my wheel chair.  He was best man at my wedding to Randy Harris.  Little did I know, but on the morning of our wedding, Randy and Michael Wayne were sitting in the chior loft having a beer, while watching our friends and family walk in!  I'm thinking it was a bit of the hair of the dog. What a sweet and gentle person he was.  I'll forever remember when Randy and I visited him in Carmel.   He is missed by so many people.  

 Mon bon ami! Like Randy, Patterson was a true and loyal best friend. His dad and my dad were in the Korean Conflict together and our mothers were lunching when Phyllis got the news that Wayne had been killed in friendly fire --before Mike had been born.  He was generous to a fault with his time and his treasures. He could truly motivate and inspire me! He was "MARRYIN' SAM " to several classmates as he joined their ceremonies.!!   We "did" several 500 tequila races together and he could twist my arm  (a case of Boone's Farm) to "clean up" his farm house after many Woodstock -like, huge and such fun parties....where Bird, Swigert, and Swisher also lived.....Can you say ANIMAL HOUSE? I visit his grave monthly, just for the nice ride and to see his face on his headstone and say hello and to remember the good times...  Many of us still go to the cemetery for these needed visits... we all miss him... and heaven is surely his latest residence...  So Patterson..."MEET ya THERE!!!"