PATTEN, Bebe H(arrison) 1913-2004

OBITUARY NOTICE—See index for CA sketch: Born September 3, 1913, in Waverly, TN; died January 25, 2004, in Walnut Creek, CA. Evangelist and author. Patten was a prominent Christian minister who, along with her husband, C. Thomas Patten, founded Patten Academy, Patten University, the Christian Cathedral, and the Christian Evangelical Churches of America, Inc., in Oakland, California. A graduate of McKinley Roosevelt Graduate College, where she earned her D.D. in 1941, she began her mission as an evangelist at the young age of twenty. She and her husband moved to California in 1944, where they continued their work and founded their educational and religious institutions. Mrs. Patten was known as the dynamic speaker of the couple, while her husband handled the finances. Trouble came in 1950, however, when Mr. Patten was convicted of fraud and served three years in San Quentin. Five years after his release, he passed away. However, Patten continued her active life in her ministry, hosting The Shepherd Hour radio program from 1951 to 1987 and, beginning in 1976, the television show The Bebe Patten Hour. She also published the magazine Trumpet Call, beginning in 1954. Never dreaming of retiring, she did cut back her workload in 2003 by leaving her Christian Cathedral, but continued to work as the chancellor of Patten University until she died. In addition to authoring Give Me Back My Soul (1972), Patten wrote twenty original gospel and religious songs. Her many awards for her work include the Ministry of Religious Affairs medallion from Israel (1969), the Government Press Office medal from Jerusalem (1971), the Hidden Heroine award from the San Francisco Bay Girl Scouts (1976), the Ben-Gurion medallion from the Ben-Gurion Research Institute (1977), the Golden State award from the Who's Who Historical Society (1988), and the Distinguished Leadership award from the Church of God School of Theology (1996).

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

San Francisco Chronicle, January 28, 2004, p. A17.

ONLINE

Contra Costa Times,http://www.contracostatimes.com/ (January 28, 2004), "Oakland Evangelist, Bible Teacher and College Founder Dies."