Patrick Thomas Dougherty was born in Hinton, Oklahoma on June 6, 1933 to Raymond Joseph Dougherty and Grace Missouri (Etier) Dougherty. Patrick passed peacefully at home, at the age of 87, on December 19, 2020, surrounded by his family singing the Lord’s Prayer and Amazing Grace.
Patrick was the youngest son of 11 children, and is survived by his sisters, Helen York and Ruth Heatley. Patrick married Rita Kathryn (Wolf) Dougherty on August 12, 1957, and they have 5 children. Patrick is survived by Rita and his children, Deb Shore, Cindy Dougherty, Pam Dougherty, Angie Dougherty and Ray Dougherty (and wife Renita). Patrick is also survived by 10 grandchildren: Jessica (and husband Mike), Chris, Cody, Melody, Rita, Kristy, Zoe, Courtney, Aaron, and Eli; and 4 great-grandchildren: Zach, Jayden, Logan, and Everett.
Service
Patrick served in the United States Marine Corps from 1953 to 1956. He was appointed rank of Sergeant in 1955, and was awarded a Certificate of Good Conduct in 1956. Patrick served in the Armed Forces Reserves 1956-1961. He was awarded the National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal, and U.N. Service Medal.
Education and Career
Patrick received his B.A. at Oklahoma State University in 1958, his M.A. at OSU in 1959, and his Ph.D. at the University of Missouri, Columbia in 1963. His major areas of interest were American Government and Politics, and Foreign Policy. Patrick was Catholic, and his dissertation focused on the influence of the Vatican on U.S. Foreign Policy.
Patrick served as Instructor, 1962-64, Assistant Professor, 1964-70, and Associate Professor, 1970 in the Department of Political Science at St. Louis University. He then served as Visiting Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Missouri, Columbia, 1970-71.
Patrick’s passion for civil rights and social justice was inspired by the words and actions of Martin Luther King, Jr. This led to his public protests of the Veiled Prophet organization in St. Louis in the early 1970s, which resulted in his leaving UMC. Patrick always stated his pride in playing his small part to bring about positive change in society. After leaving UMC, Patrick served as Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at Meramec Community College in St. Louis, Mo, 1972, and Forest Park Community College in St. Louis in 1973.
Patrick later worked as Regional Field Coordinator for Green Thumb, later called Experience Works, which is a national nonprofit organization whose mission is to make a positive difference in local communities by empowering older individuals to use their talents and abilities through training opportunities to re-enter the workforce. Patrick loved driving around the county to meet older workers, listen to their stories, and help them acquire meaningful employment.
Van Horn Tavern
Although Patrick was a political scientist, his true passion was American history. All who know him are aware of his fascination for history and incessant reading of heavy tomes. Patrick loved sharing his knowledge of history with others.
His property in Columbia Missouri included a historic building, Van Horn Torn at https://missouriencyclopedia.org/places/van-horn-tavern, which was built in 1830. The tavern served as an inn for travelers on the historic Boone’s Lick Road. After years of researching how best to preserve the building with its rich history, Patrick was able to donate the building to the Boone Monument Village in Marthasville, Missouri, where the tavern will be rebuilt on land with other historic buildings.
Grandchildren
Patrick was known to his grandchildren as Grandpapalinskilioni. He never tired of creating fun for his grandkids, including the famous Dinosaur Trail, which he carved through trees and brush in the back pasture, so the kids could search for the elusive dinosaurs. He also maintained colorfully painted tire swings and a campfire out back for roasting hot dogs and marshmallows.
Grandpapalinskalioni wrote monthly journals for his grandkids, which he mailed in the early days and later sent by email, as a way of sharing family history. He was known to embellish these stories as well, and had great fun creating many tall tales about his own life and about the lives of his grandkids. His stories will live on through our retellings; and of course, we are likely to embellish these as well!
Poetry and Song
Rita Dougherty is the love of Patrick’s life. He wrote many love letters to Rita through the years, and often sang to her Doris Day’s song, Secret Love, which he sang during the last days of his life. Patrick often walked at the recreation center for exercise, and had a list of folk songs he loved to sing. Some of these were taught to him by his older brother Ray when he was young. It was not unusual for other walkers to smile as they walked by, and comment on his songs, and sometimes even sing along! He got to know many of the other walkers, and gave each of them fun nicknames. Patrick was also a poet and a songwriter. He wrote songs such as, One Arm’s Length Away (inspired by a speech by Pope Paul VI) Written by Patrick Dougherty. Lyrics can be viewed at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faO2vmoke2M; Running in Glory; No More War (based on Pope Paul VI address to the United Nations General Assembly in 1965). Lyrics can be viewed at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egKm5oQlWDo , and a version of the Lord’s Prayer set to his music. The main theme for each of these songs was human kindness and world peace.
Favorite Quotes
Patrick loved his Irish heritage, and enjoyed celebrating St. Patrick’s Day. When introducing himself to others, he would often say, “I’m the Patrick who is not a saint.”
When asked, “How are you doing?” Patrick would often answer, “Pretty good; I think, I hope I pray.”
If you lost something and were looking for it, Patrick would say, “You will find it right in front of you.”
Patrick would often repeat a saying he heard often from his father, “You are a gentleman (or gentlewoman) and a scholar.”
If you were troubled by something, Patrick would say, “Do your best with the things you have control over, and let go of the things you can’t control.”
Often on his birthday, Patrick would remind us of his older sister Helen’s words to him, “No matter how hard you try, you will never catch up to me!”
Final Thoughts
While we are fortunate to have had our father, husband, brother, grandfather, and great grandfather on this earth for 87 years, our hearts are heavy with loss. Patrick was an exceptional human being, whose presence, kindness, caring, and smile will endure. He always made each one of us feel special. He always made us laugh. We are blessed to have him in our lives, and his legacy will continue through us. We imagine him sitting up in heaven at the big family table, enjoying telling tall stories with his family. And we can hear the angels laughing.
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in memory to your favorite organization or charity.
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