Pat Gest, OSEA’s first female president and one of our fiercest advocates, will be remembered for her huge heart and backbone made of steel.
Patricia Mitchell Gest passed away on Nov. 9th at the age of 97. Her family, friends and the OSEA archives tell a story of a life devoted to fighting for the dignity, quality of life and right to be heard for classified school employees across Oregon. She was an educator, a leader, a committed union staffer and a woman whose empathy and faith drew her to the labor movement.
“She put her heart in it, everything she did at OSEA, her heart was first,” her daughter Mari Anne Gest said. “And then, of course, the job, but it was the heart that bound her to work so hard for classified school employees.”
Her involvement with OSEA began in Hood River in 1968, where she was a Secretary and the equivalent of an Educational Assistant, which was a new role in classrooms at the time.
Soon she was the president of Hood River Chapter 9. When John Brown, the Executive Director of OSEA at the time, visited her chapter, he saw her leadership potential and encouraged her to ramp up her engagement.
It was a real exciting time, because we really had nothing to work with... but I was so happy to be working in schools.
“The more she learned, the more excited she was to be involved,” Mari Anne said. “Once she got involved, and it just took going to some meetings, she was off and running. She just had a penchant for it.”
In 1973, Oregon passed the Public Employees Collective Bargaining Act (PECBA), ending what Pat called “collective begging.” As Chapter President, she bargained Hood River Chapter 9’s first contract under PECBA.
She was elected as the first female president of OSEA in 1974. OSEA leadership at the time was mostly men, but her longtime friend and mentee Mary Slawosky said Pat stepped confidently into the room.
“She didn’t have any problem charming those guys,” Mary said. “And she could charm you into doing anything she wanted you to do, but it was always something of value. She always wanted everything we did to have value.”
Pat served as President for two years before being hired as a Field Representative in 1975. She moved to Salem, where she lived until the day she passed. When she retired from OSEA in 1996, she was awarded a lifetime membership for her service. Of the 12-hour days she often found herself working, she wrote: “It’s a good thing I loved my work and always felt I was doing God’s work helping people who had no voice.”
One of the most exciting moments of my life and one of the most fulfilling was when I became the first woman president of OSEA in 1974.
She was heavily involved in advocating for classified school employees at the Capitol. In one of her most memorable campaigns, she and John Brown worked together on sick leave protections for classified staff. She fondly recalled the extensive and creative efforts they took to get that bill passed – they sent “Happy Birthday, Oregon! Vote SB 458” cards, gave out Valentine’s Day candy (the vote was held on Valentine’s Day) and even campaigned for a State Senate candidate who was eventually elected. The bill passed by that one vote. It set classified sick leave minimums to 10 days a year or 1 day per month, whichever is greater, and allowed for unlimited accumulation.
In 1978, she helped lead the first and only strike in OSEA’s history in Reedsport, a small town on the southern Oregon coast. The strike lasted 9 days. It rained most of the time, but the employees stayed outside on their picket lines.
Watching her mother run the Reedsport strike sparked Mari Anne’s own passion for the labor movement. As she learned more about the experiences of the chapter’s classified employees, she saw the intrinsic value of solidarity.
“I really began to understand the importance of union work and binding together and that you could accomplish things when you came together,” she said. “It was when everybody was on their own that nobody got anything worth having. You just have to join together.”
Pat was promoted to Director of Operations, and then Director of Field Operations, where she oversaw seven active field offices. She created and ran workshops on collective bargaining and organizing not just for Oregon’s classified, but for school support staff all across the country through what was then the American Association of Classified School Employees (AACSE).
Before she retired from OSEA, she trained other union leaders to take on her work. Mary Slawosky remembers traveling with Pat to learn how to run her workshops. “Pat was a very gentle spirit and a kind spirit. She always let me take a lead on things and then would help me polish things off,” Mary said. “She was like that with everybody. She was like that with staff, with the field reps, that’s just how she operated. She was a teacher.”
After she retired, she had a brief foray into politics before she began to travel the world. She stayed involved with OSEA for a long time, attending Conferences and helping people. At Conference 2022, she swore in current OSEA President Sarah Wofford.
“I hold that memory close to my heart,” Wofford said. “There was something so magical about her presence, not just on that night, but any time I got to be with her. She was always ready to teach, to speak, to listen. She was a true OSEA icon.”
The benefits you have to your PERS, all of these things, they didn't just happen for kicks.
Sheree Little, who served as State President in 1998-2000, said that on the Conference floor, Pat and Mary sought out anyone wearing “first timer” badges or looking like they were out of their comfort zone.
“She would put them at ease. There’d be laughter and there’d be giggles, but you’d be learning at the same time,” Sheree said. “She made it okay to take a chance, she made it okay to participate. Whether it was just participating in the auction at Conference or suggesting another way you could be involved with your chapter, she was always fully engaged with OSEA.”
Pat was very proud of the fact that two of her daughters, Mari Anne and her late sister Dianne, chose union work. Mari Anne was the first person OSEA hired as Political Advocate and she worked here for 10 years.
Mari Anne and Sheree gave the same answer when asked about Pat’s advice to up-and-coming union leaders: “Get involved. Attend a meeting. Get educated.”
Pat’s monumental contributions to OSEA will forever be part of her legacy.
A celebration of Pat’s life will be held on Saturday, Dec. 14th, at 1:00 p.m. at the First Christian Church (685 Marion Street NE, Salem). It will also be broadcast live on the church website. Memorial gifts may be made to First Christian Church or Willamette Vital Health (Hospice) in honor of her legacy of faith, service, and love.