Emily Jane Patrick

Emily Jane Patrick, 48 of Baytown, Texas, passed away on June 1, 2023 following an 18-month battle with cancer. Emily was preceded in death by her father, John Patrick of Spangler, Pennsylvania; paternal-grandfather Nicholas "Nick" Patrick; paternal-grandmother, Helen Patrick; maternal-grandfather, Harry Merrie; and maternal-grandmother, Joan Merrie. She is survived by her mother, Linda Patrick, who was born in Portsmouth, England and now resides in Baytown, Texas.

Emily was born August 21, 1974 in Mayfield Heights, Ohio. For her parents, John and Linda, Emily was a blessing from the moment she was born. A happy and curious child, Emily loved reading and carried a book everywhere—during car rides, evenings at home, and even summer afternoons by the pool. The endless hours spent with books gave her a quick wit and quirky sense of humor, making her unstoppable at any and every trivia night. In addition to being a bibliophile, Emily enjoyed traveling the world with her family. Before graduating high school, Emily visited England, Scotland, France, and Belgium; these experiences inspired in Emily an appreciation of cultural differences and a gracious disposition, often seen through her advocacy work and generous nature. 

In 1996, Emily obtained her Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Classics from the University of Texas at Austin where she was a proud member of Alpha Phi. She then obtained a Master of Arts in Communication with a focus on Film Theory and History from University of Miami in 2002. During graduate school, she spent a semester abroad studying in Prague at the prestigious FAMU film academy, and she later wrote her dissertation on the use of musical montage in film, such as the infamous "Twist and Shout" dance sequence in Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

A lifetime learner, Emily continued her studies after graduate school, completing a Texas teaching certification in English which she used to obtain her first teaching position at Robert E. Lee High School in Baytown, Texas. It was there that Emily discovered her passion for literacy instruction and talent as an educator. After working nine years at Lee, Emily accepted a position teaching British Literature at IMPACT Early College High School, where she remained for ten years. During this same time, she worked as a dual credit instructor for Lee College. Of all the courses Emily taught through the years, she most loved analyzing cinematic techniques during film class. Students often teased that they could no longer watch a film without studying the camera angles or lighting, and she made sure they knew that, in a film, rain means change. Emily devoted two decades of her life to public education, with countless students returning to share how they benefited from her teaching and support.

Emily's greatest joy was inspiring a love for reading in her students. She cultivated an inclusive classroom library with the goal of ensuring that all students could see themselves and their experiences in the books on her shelves. Over the course of her career, Emily was awarded five grants dedicated to placing books in the hands of students, and she also sponsored campus reading circles and book clubs. Her commitment to students and tireless efforts resulted in Emily being awarded Secondary District Teacher of the year in 2016 and Campus Teacher of the Year in 2016 and 2022.

Outside of the classroom, Emily continued traveling throughout her life. She visited Russia, Cuba, Germany, Panama, Italy, Mexico, Czech Republic, Poland, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Turkey, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Estonia, Denmark, Canada, Costa Rica, Belize, Colombia, Saint Kitts, Jamaica, Haiti, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, Honduras, and the Cayman Islands. Of all her travels, Emily most loved visiting Istanbul, where her parents first met.

A celebration of life will take place on June 22nd from 5:30-7:30 in the Regency Room at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, 100 Convention Center Way, Baytown, Texas. This is a come and go event, and the family invites anyone who wishes to bring with them a new book for teen readers which will be donated in Emily's honor to The Promise Center in Baytown, Texas, a charity organization where she volunteered. In lieu of flowers, please make donations in Emily's name to the two organizations that sponsored her book grants: The Goose Creek Education Foundation and Donors Choose.