Nine years ago, I sat at a conference table at CDF headquarters in Washington DC with Marian Wright Edelman and Marylee Allen discussing my desire to be the next Executive Director of the Texas office of the Children’s Defense Fund. At the end of the meeting Mrs. Edelman (in her commanding voice) said “Patrick, you should take this job.” “Yes ma’am,” I thought. And what a great decision it was.
After ten years of national work, I returned to the mission of trying to make Texas a better place for marginalized children and families. Throughout my career I have worked with good people who share my desire to bend this world we live in toward justice. It has been a great privilege to work with the talented and dedicated team we have built at CDF-Texas. I achieved my goals of building on the legacy of the Texas office while addressing new challenges with vigor and commitment. We expanded our direct child health outreach & enrollment and our advocacy and organizing for the uninsured. We built a new youth civic education and engagement initiative and stepped up to be a voice for immigrant children and families.
The team at CDF-Texas is simply amazing and I know the work and impact will continue to grow even as I step away. Thank you to each of them and all the great partners and collaborators who have helped make this capstone to my career so rewarding.
