Every so often, a person passes away and it’s really just about impossible to put into words what they meant to the community in which they lived. In my opinion, Elmer Patrick is such a person.
I am not a native of Williamsburg or Whitley County, but I have lived and worked around here long enough to know that pretty much everyone above a certain age has at least one Elmer Patrick story that they can share. Most who have had the chance to interact with him in some capacity or another seem to have several. I have a couple myself, and I would like to share one here in my column this week.
Elmer served as a state representative several decades ago. It was just one of many accomplishments during his lifetime, and while I would have to spend a considerable amount of time digging through our archives in order to give you any sort of a detailed account of his time in Frankfort, suffice it to say that he ruffled some feathers.
At least, that’s how he himself explained it to me not too long ago when I was attempting to help him compose some letters to the editor to run in the pages of the News Journal…
Elmer defied the odds by living long after doctors told him that he probably wouldn’t be around for very much longer. I don’t know the exact extent of his health struggles, but when he first contacted me about submitting these letters, he made it clear that he knew he was on borrowed time. He told me that he had some things that he wanted to share with folks in the community, but he wasn’t really able to write it all down himself.
After hearing him out, I decided that I would listen to what he had to say, put it onto paper for him, and then let him review the submission so that he could have the final say on whether or not to run it on our editorial page. Unfortunately, I was never able to get things exactly the way that he wanted, but I have held onto the drafts of those letters for this very purpose.
It is actually sort of poetic that I have ended up writing this particular column in this particular issue of the News Journal. The whole idea behind Elmer reaching out to me in the first place was so that I could help him share his final thoughts with friends and family before it was too late. He had some very strong opinions on what needs to happen in this country, and I will share some of those ideas here.
“The problems in government can never be solved with more politics. The only true answer is through the application of Christian morals, and until that comes about, nothing else will fall into line.”
That was Elmer’s first, and most important point.
“Our country has to change soon, or the things that we hold dear are going to fall by the wayside.”
From here, Elmer began to get into more specific concerns. Much of what he talked to me about was his personal belief that certain socialist ideals would only ever serve to widen the wealth gap in our country. In his opinion, a national sales tax would go a long way in evening out the playing field and, in his estimation, would fix a lot of the problems that we are faced with today when it comes to adequately funding the military, police force, government services, infrastructure projects, etc., etc., etc.
I will let you do your own research on national sales tax proposals and decide for yourself whether you think it is a good idea or not. My intent here is not to convince anyone of anything. Rather, it is simply to convey some of what Elmer said to me during our conversations, because that is ultimately what he said he wanted.
Another thing he said to me was, “One of the biggest problems with government is that there is one thing that controls it – money. Just follow the money, and follow the power. One controls the other.”
I don’t think too many people would have argued with him there.
Elmer also urged me, on multiple occasions, to look up Paul Harvey’s “If I were the devil” speech online. The words spoken by Harvey in this brief address seemed to sum up perfectly everything that he wanted to say, so I will point you all in that same direction.
Elmer was from the old school, so he had a lot of old school views on things. You may agree with those views, or you may disagree, but you can’t argue the fact that the man was beloved by many in his community. Political views aside, he took an active role in trying to make this a better place for his kids and grandkids. For that, I commend him.
