Pat Kepferle

This page is dedicated in memory to Pat Kepferle. Pat is the motivation behind why we started this non-profit organization. Pat has touched all our lives in some way, and helped make us all better people. Below is a small glimpse into Pat’s life.

Pat’s Story

Joseph Patrick Kepferle was born on March 22, 1981 in the small town of Coupeville, on Whidbey Island, Washington. The second of four children, he was a creative, inquisitive child who kept his parents challenged with his antics. One of his earliest adventures was escaping from the house before he was two, and wandering off to a playground in the neighborhood. His frantic parents soon found him in good hands, playing in a sandbox and surrounded by other mothers, who said that they figured he was so cute someone would claim him eventually.

In 1984 his family moved to southern Maryland and settled in Lexington Park. There, Pat attended pre-school, Town Creek Elementary and Esperanza Middle School. His adventures continued and he formed close friendships with many children in the neighborhood as well as throughout Saint Mary’s county. Pat played the piano, guitar and trumpet in middle school, loved sports and was an avid fan of the University of Notre Dame. Throughout his life he enjoyed the challenges and camaraderie of nearly every sport he learned, playing basketball, baseball, soccer, lacrosse, and tennis. He was active in high school drama, performed in many high school plays; and he dreamed of pursuing a career as a comic. Throughout his high school years his circle of friends continued to grow as he loved having fun with anyone, often playing three-on-three basketball whenever he could.

Pat graduated from Great Mills High School and entered Towson University as a freshman in 1999. There his outgoing personality and fun-loving spirit fostered close friendships with many other students from around the country. He joined the Kappa Sigma fraternity and obviously loved college life. The first week in March, 2000 he returned to St. Mary’s county to see his local friends and go to the regional basketball tournament where his former high school team was playing. That weekend his parents took him back to college, and on March 5th, he succumbed to vaccine-preventable meningococcal disease, a severe bacterial infection that took his life in a matter of hours. He died just weeks before his 19th birthday.

Patrick is often remembered as “the first friend I ever had” and a peacemaker among his peers. He loved life, certainly living it to the fullest, had a wild sense of humor, and most of all enjoyed spending time with his friends. He is truly the embodiment of his own words, “The times that are the shortest are remembered the longest.” His time with us was much too short; but his enduring spirit inspires the charitable efforts of his family and friends.