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Michael Padilla, 277-1816

March 8, 2002

Los Alamos native marches on to obtain music degree

Tom Patton, a 2001 graduate from Los Alamos High, says coming to the University of New Mexico had a humbling affect on him.

“Coming to UNM made me realize a lot,” Patton says. “I was a big fish when I was in Los Alamos and when I got here I realized that I have to work harder for what I want.”

Patton, son of Mary and Howard Patton, is a music education major and plans to become a band teacher after graduation. His current goals are to learn as much as he can and be the best at what he is doing.

At UNM, he is a member of the UNM marching and jazz band. Patton likes the relaxed atmosphere of the UNM bands. “When I was in high school it was intense and now people here are friendly and will go out of their way to help you,” he said, adding that Los Alamos really disciplined him well for college.

“One of my biggest accomplishments and personal victories here at UNM was making it into the jazz band,” he said.

After an accident this summer, Patton thought he would never be able to play again.

“I fell off a cliff this summer,” he said. “It was a pretty major accident, and I am lucky to be alive. When I fell, I bit through my lip and couldn’t play my sax for a good two months. After that, I had to re-learn how to play around the miscellaneous scar tissue and numb spots on my lip.”

Patton encourages students not to get discouraged and for them to do the best they can. He says his big accomplishments at LAHS were being a drum major for the marching band, being a Topper Review MC and achieving his Boy Scout Eagle award. He also had a jazz combo of his own, named Café Jazz, which played professionally around Los Alamos.

Since music takes up most of his time he says his activities are limited to hanging out with friends. He lives in the dorm and enjoys walking five minutes to get wherever he needs to go.

“Overall UNM is a great school and there are a lot of programs here to choose from,” he said, adding that he has always had an interest in math and science.

“The professors here are genuinely interested in helping me,” he said, recognizing his saxophone instructor Patrick Posey as one who has helped him out tremendously at UNM. He said he connects really well with young kids and is easy to connect with. “He has been very supportive and patient.”

“This place has everything that I need,” he says. “Coming to UNM was the best thing that I could have done.”

Originally from Livermore, Calif, he says he has fallen in love with New Mexico. “I go out and enjoy the beautiful sunsets,” he said. “I wonder if I ever have to leave it?”

He said he still wants to explore what fields are available to him and see what opportunities there are for him.
“I have to keep in mind that I am not here to show how good I am but that I am here to learn,” he says.

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The University of New Mexico
Public Affairs Department
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Albuquerque, NM 87131-0011
Telephone: (505) 277-5813
Fax: (505) 277-1981