CU Nursing - Spring/Summer 2021 - 17

17

COLLEGE

care. Our nurses are already making
a difference - touching greater than
half a million veterans in just the last
few years. Out of the VMHC Area of
Excellence that has brought together
many community partners, CU Nursing
will be launching a Consortium for
Veteran and Military Health to continue
this engagement, fostering research,
and disseminating scholarship.
For more information and to register
for the Partnership for Veteran and
Military Health Conference, visit
https://cucon.regfox.com/vmh2021. If
you are a veteran or a military service
member, a family member, or caregiver and need financial assistance to
attend, contact Ann Froese-Fretz at
ann.froese-fretz@cuanschutz.edu
or Karen Mellis at
karen.mellis@cuanschutz.edu.
This conference is dedicated to Patrick
Browne, Director of Veteran and
Military Student Services at CU.

Thank you to the following
organizations who have helped
make the conference possible:
*	 The University of Colorado Helen and
Arthur E. Johnson Depression Center
*	 The University of Denver, Graduate
School of Professional Psychology/
Military Psychology
*	 The Steven A. Cohen Military Family
Clinic at the University of Colorado
Anschutz Medical Campus
*	 The University of Colorado Marcus
Institute for Brain Health
*	 The Rocky Mountain MIRECC Suicide
Prevention Program
*	 Community Partners, Seeking the
Military Suicide Solution Podcast
#veteranmentalhealth

EXCERPT FROM
PATRICK BROWNE'S
TRIBUTE ARCHIVE

P

atrick was a husband,
friend, son, brother, cousin,
nephew and son-in-law.
He was a classic rock and
hip hop music lover, keen
golfer, supreme puzzle solver, lover of
Lego, avid Denver Broncos fan, world
traveler and dedicated devourer of his
wife Rachel's home cooked meals. His
house and arms were always open to
newcomers; he thrived on ensuring
others were having a good time. His
sense of humor was a source of light
and laughter for many who got to
know him.
After Patrick was honorably discharged from the Army in July
2005, he returned to Denver and
decided that he needed to invest in
his future. In 2006, he enrolled in
the Community College of Denver
where he earned his Associate's
Degree. He continued on in his
studies at the University of Colorado
Denver where he graduated in 2010
with his BSBA with an emphasis in
Management and Human Resources.
After his college graduation, Patrick
worked in Human Resources as well
as working with disabled Veterans
with the State of Colorado, but
found his true calling when he
returned to University of Colorado
Denver in the office of Veteran and
Military Student Services, where he
spent the next ten years pursuing his
true passion; serving veterans and
their families. Patrick was a natural
leader who was devoted to ensuring
the success of military-connected
students in his several roles at the
University - as a Program Manager

and later as the Director of the Office
of Veteran and Military Student
Services. In December 2018, Patrick
graduated from the University of
Colorado Denver with a Master's
Degree in Administrative Leadership
and Policy Studies which he applied daily as a true advocate and
supporter for Veterans discharging
from the military and making the
transition into civilian life. Whether
it was answering student questions
regarding their Veteran education
benefits or coming to support a
Veteran in the midst of a personal
crisis, Patrick was always there for
them completely, and his memory
will live on in this legacy.
Patrick was a true friend to CU
Nursing's Veteran and Military Health
Care (VMHC) program and was supportive of the VMHC program since its
inception in 2015. He was a welcome
participant in our CU Nursing VMHC
Area of Excellence. For two years the
VMHC AOE had a project of collecting
resources that can be used by providers with Colorado Veterans and
Patrick was instrumental in helping
us with this list of over 450 resources,
having students in his office check the
links and verify the information. This
resource guide has since been distributed to over two dozen community
partners in Colorado. Patrick will be
missed greatly.
https://cucon.regfox.com/vmh2021
CU Nursing - Spring/Summer 2021

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