Patrick showed up in my dorm room a few days into our freshman year, before we had even started being Carleton students. My original roommate left a day or two after arriving! After some unremembered orientation activity, I came back to “my“ room in Davis and there was Patrick! It was a big surprise for the kid from Minneapolis who thought everything was done “just so.” Patrick’s assertive “this is my room now too” personality caught me off guard, yet worked perfectly. It was my first lesson at Carleton on how people who are different from what I had previously encountered could be amazing. It sounds silly, narrow-minded, and flat out stupid now, but it was an important learning experience for me. (Wait! Is that why we go to college?) “East coast” Patrick, accepted me immediately. I don’t know if he learned anything from me. But I definitely learned from him, on many levels, although I didn’t realize it at the time. Here’s an example, right from the start, October 1971. He thought that the radiator in our room was a relic of ancient “technology.” So, he decided to fix it without “permission.” Somehow, he got a solenoid, thermostat, wires, and a bunch of other stuff that he attached to the ancient radiator valve and, boom! When our room got cold, the solenoid opened the valve on the radiator until the temp was right and then it closed the valve when the desired temp had been reached. It was noisy but I worked. I had never thought like that. True, one day the solenoid got jammed, overheated and we had a little electrical fire (ozone smell, etc.), but for me, it was another amazing lesson learned. That summarizes my remembrance of Patrick over 4 years – his energetic personality (foreign to a “good boy” from Minneapolis) combined with great good nature and intellectual brilliance. I lost touch with him after graduation, but I hope he shared those amazing qualities with all he encountered throughout his life. I am sad that he is no longer with us.
-Tom Henderson ’75
Patrick Briley ’75
29 March 2024
Comments
Pat was my highschool boyfriend and we came to Carleton "together", although as with many such connections, by the end of the year we were no longer a couple. But he was a wonderful fellow - thoughtful, generous, funny - and of course very sharp. He had juvenile-onset diabetes and managed it like a scientist for his whole life, but it's a wicked condition that wears out the body and spirit. We were not in touch after college so I don't know what he did post-Carleton.
Pat was my brother-in-law for a short time. I’m so sorry that I never got to know him. I’m really sorry to hear of his death. I hope he found God and peace at the end.