When Brian J. Patterson calls, he’s not really asking for your help as much as telling you how you will be helping.
There is a common theme to who he helps. People bullied in society or those forgotten about — especially those who served the country in uniform.A
There’s is also common theme to his opening line: The Good Shepherd mission is in need of blankets and sleeping bags for those who live in the ravines, and we need to get the word out. Or there are dozens of veterans who died impoverished and didn’t get a proper burial and we need to get the word out. Or a veteran has been kicked out of his apartment because the landlord wants to renovate and get three times the rent and we have to get the word out.
You don’t say no the Brian Patterson. The word is getting out if he wants it out.
He just has a way about him. He’s kind and unassuming. But persuasive.
If he wants something done to help somebody or to keep the public safe, you do it. And over the two decades he’s been the president and CEO of the 112-year-old Ontario Safety League, a volunteer with the Last Post or as Captain in the historic 48th Highlanders reserve infantry, he called a lot.
Needless to say there was no way I was going to miss his retirement party. Nor was I surprised the Royalton Palace in Brampton was packed to the rafters Wednesday with hundreds of people he has worked with over the years.
What a night that was. Amazing stories, great people, excellent food and even Elmer the Safety Elephant was top of mind.
From Ontario Safety League directors Keith Perron, John Turtle, Angelo DiCicco to Col. Geordie Elms of the 48th Highlanders, the narrative was the same. “Brian Patterson is about public service and community safety.”
He has many medals and awards, including the King’s coronation medal, but results are what drive him. He wants a better, safer Ontario. Patterson, proud husband to Lesley and father to Gavin, is effectively a volunteer ombudsman who reminds of the old TV show The Equalizer in that he has a network of people from all walks of life he can deploy at any time to turn the problem into a solution.
There are so many stories there’s not enough space to tell even a few of them. However, one that jumps out was back in December 2019 when word came out that a landlord nicknamed Scrooge booted 77-year-old Queen’s York Rangers veteran Peter “Smitty” Smith out of his apartment of 52 years at Christmas.
“They may have messed with the wrong Ranger,” declared Patterson. “No way we were going to let it stand. Within minutes, the (regiment sergeant major) had arranged a lawyer, an accountant, and support team which included a half dozen soldiers to help him move.”
Smitty got another apartment but more than that, he realized he was not alone in his battle. Patterson is of the mind set that no one gets left behind on his watch. He’s not one to complain about adversity but with his friends in every sector of the country, instead, he leans into the wind and changes its direction.
At the core of it, Patterson is about keeping things fair and keeping people safe and happy.
Having once as a young soldier driven around the Royal Family at the Montreal Olympics in 1976, Patterson learned early that perhaps the most dangerous place there is for people is on the roadway. So, with six different Transportation ministers and partnering with cops like OPP traffic guru Sgt. Kerry Schmidt, they went to work on getting better training for truck drivers and better enforcement on the highways.
“We can prevent deaths from happening by making the roads safer,” Patterson always said.
Every life is precious, and every person is vital.
And even though he is retiring from the Ontario Safety League, Patterson is planning to continue his public service by volunteering. What that means is the phone will soon ring with a request of which cause he wants covered and there is no possible way to decline.
The only difference is that call may come from the safest boat in a fishing hole off Manitoulin Island. Happy retirement, Brian. Congratulations. And thank you.