Leroy Patrick, age 84 of Brookings, and formerly of White, passed away Sunday, November 10, 2019, at home from an apparent heart attack.  

Mass of Christian Burial will be 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019, at St. Thomas More Parish in Brookings with burial in Fairview Cemetery at White.  Visitations will be 4-6:30 p.m. on Friday, November 15, 2019, at McKnight Community Center in White with a Wake Service at 6:45 p.m. at St. Paul’s Catholic Church in White.  Eidsness Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.

Leroy Alvin Patrick was born July 11, 1935, to Benjamin and Irene (Smith) Patrick in Elkton.  He grew up in rural White and graduated from White High School in 1954.  On July 26, 1958, Leroy married Ann Lieser in St. Martin, MN.  They were married for 61 years.

Throughout his life, Leroy was an extremely devoted and beloved member of the White community.  Beginning in his younger years, Leroy held many jobs in White, including working at the Creamery, as the White City cop, and the owner and operator of a back hoe, road maintainer, dump truck, and caterpillar.  He also served in the Army National Guard.  In 1967, Leroy became the owner and operator of Patrick Oil Company, delivering bulk fuel and providing both private and commercial heating, cooling, electrical, and plumbing work until 1997. 

Leroy was also a committed volunteer, spending countless hours devoting his time to improving the community around him.  Leroy was the last President of the White School Board, and the first President of the Deubrook School Board in 1967, and received the Deubrook Inspirational Alumnus Award in 1985, and was inducted into the Deubrook Alumni Association Hall of Fame in 2017.  He was also a member of the Businessman’s Association, White Community Club, White Development Board, the Fairview Cemetery Board, and a member of the White Nursing Home Development Committee.  In 1989, Leroy was honored to receive the Governor of South Dakota’s Volunteer of the Year award.

Leroy’s faith also held special meaning in his life, and as a member of St. Paul’s Catholic Church in White, Leroy provided significant maintenance to the church, including aiding in preserving the steeple.  Leroy also spent time as a member of the Sioux Falls Diocesan Council.

Perhaps most notably, Leroy had a passion for helping others, and spent a large part of his life working in White with the White Ambulance Service and the White Fire Department.  Leroy began volunteering with the White Fire Department in 1961, and retired from the department in 2009, spending 26 of those years as Fire Chief, and was recognized as the Volunteer Fire Chief of the Year in 1978. In 2009, the community renamed the White Fire Hall to the Leroy Patrick Fire Hall.

Leroy was a proud co-founder of the White Ambulance Service, beginning in 1974, until 2009, and was one of the original members of the SD EMT Association, as well as the EMT Test Team.  Due to his outstanding commitment to White, Leroy received the South Dakota EMT of the year award in 1980, and 2008, and received the Sanford Individual Excellence Award in EMS Award in 2008. Also from 1983-2018, Leroy donated his time by providing traffic control for funeral escorts crossing highway 30.

Although Leroy was a committed and loyal member of his community, he will also be remembered as loving and caring member of his family and a friend to many.  

He was known as a jack of all trades, and a master of many, and was always quick to help a friend or family member in need.  

Leroy enjoyed fishing, camping, and reminiscing about the past, farming his “40 acres”, as well as spending time with his family and friends.  Leroy also enjoyed snowmobiling, and was an active member of the White Wanderers snowmobile club in the 70’s and 80’s.  

Leroy purchased the 1st hole at the 6 Mile Creek Golf Course, spending hundreds of hours assisting with building and landscaping the golf course.  Every winter, Leroy and Ann enjoyed traveling to Edinburgh, Texas, where Leroy was known as the handyman of the park, grilling hamburgers for the park residents every Saturday for many years.

Survivors include Leroy’s beloved wife, Ann Patrick; children: Carol (Kelly) Niswender, Daryl (Stacey) Patrick, and Nancy (Mark) Petersen; foster son, David (Zetha) Red Bear; grandchildren: Jacob (Ashley) Niswender, Alicia Howe, Kellie Niswender, Kelly Lenahan, Alex (Brittany) Patrick, Abby Patrick (Kosta), Amanda Patrick (Garrett), Anthony Patrick, Kyle Petersen (Annie),  Kevin Petersen (Jenna), and Kody Petersen; four great-grandchildren; siblings: Barb Crosser, and Norris Patrick; and 15 brothers and sisters-in-law; and many nieces and nephews.

Those preceding Leroy in death include his parents; step-father, parents-in-law; siblings: Arlen, Murl, and Dorothy; a foster son, Carl Red Bear; 9 brothers-in-law; and 1 sister-in-law.

In lieu of flowers, Leroy’s family suggests that donations be made in Leroy’s memory to the Fairview Cemetery Fund in White, South Dakota.