Major Everick Patterson never pushed his son to follow in his footsteps of serving in the military and law enforcement. Lance Corporal Trey Patterson did that all on his own. 

“Some people try to persuade their children to take a certain path, but I’ve never done that,” said Patterson, a 29-year veteran of the South Carolina Highway Patrol. Still, he wasn’t shocked when his son joined the military and then pursued a career in law enforcement, first with the Bureau of Protective Services and then with the State Transport Police. 

“Watching my dad while growing up, I was definitely interested in the profession,” Lance Corporal Patterson said. STP specifically caught his eye at a young age, after going with his dad to Highway Patrol graduations and seeing videos of troopers and STP officers during their training. He wondered why the STP officers wore darker colored uniforms. 

“I remember thinking, if all of these guys in the lighter uniforms are troopers, then these guys in the darker uniforms must be super troopers,” he said, laughing at his childhood understanding of the two divisions. 

Major Patterson said he always wanted two children: One boy and one girl. “So when our first son was born, and Trey was born, I wasn’t going to take that chance,” he said. “I was good with what we had.” 

But life is funny sometimes. And even though Lance Corporal Patterson was hoping for a son, he was blessed with three girls. 

“I got all the daughters that I wanted — from my son,” Major Patterson said with a laugh.  

Fatherhood is something no one is every really prepared for, both men say, adding that they found truth in the proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child.” The elder Patterson learned that truth when he and his wife were deployed with the military at the same time, and leaned on family members to help with their sons. The younger Patterson has learned it as a single dad balancing fatherhood with a law enforcement career. 

“I’m 31 years old, and I call my momma and daddy almost daily when it comes to parenting,” he said. “At the end of the day, they have the experience and the knowledge we need as parents.” 

Major Patterson, who previously worked in the Highway Patrol’s Training Unit and teaches the First Line Leadership Class to up-and-coming supervisors on the patrol, said there are some areas of overlap between fatherhood and law enforcement. 

“Being a leader is like being a parent, and these young troopers are like your children,” he said. “You care for your children. You try to provide your children with the best. You discipline them when you have to. You reward them when you can. You mentor them. You serve as a role model for them.” 

Major Patterson chuckled thinking about how he grew up on the Highway Patrol working alongside many of STP’s command staff. Lance Corporal Patterson said people often confuse him with a younger version of his father, and that he’s heard a lot of great stories from his dad’s earlier years on the patrol. He knows he has a lot to live up to. 

“Wearing this Patterson name plate on my uniform carries a little bit of weight,” he said. “My dad’s always told me, ‘Respect will take you places that money can’t.’ I have not only heard that, but I have lived that.” 

He tries to instill those same values in his daughters, while also making as many great memories with them in these younger years. 

“I just wish someone had told me how fast it goes by,” he said. “You watch them grow up in the blink of an eye. That kind of caught me off guard.” 

It’s something every parent learns in time, Major Patterson said. 

“You don’t get a second chance. You get one chance at being a parent,” he said. “You may get a second opportunity with grandchildren, but you only get one chance with your children.” 

So Lance Corporal Patterson tries to make the best of his chance with his daughters and the rest of his family. They love boating and fishing together — just as he did with his family as a child, and their entire family gets together regularly for birthdays and important events. But working at the Department of Public Safety alongside his father allows him to continue building on those memories from his childhood while serving South Carolina.  

“It’s a really unique opportunity,” he said. “There’s probably not a lot of guys who can say that they’ve worked with their dad at some point. I know he won’t be around forever, and I’m thankful I’ve been able to work with him for, at this point, 10 years.”