Change of scenery
New Waterford woman changes career paths and lands job with Marine Atlantic
Being a problem solver and tinkering with electrical and mechanical issues has always been a passion for Brenda Patterson.
But it wasn’t until her later years that she decided to further her education in the field of engineering.
The New Waterford native began her working career in the cosmetology industry, opening her own business, Star Salon, in Sydney in the mid 1990s.
After owning the shop for five years, Patterson decided to close her business in 1999 to begin the journey of becoming an engineer.
“I think it was my personality that made me make the change,” said Patterson. “I accomplished really great things with my business in that industry, but I seemed to have hit the ceiling — my heart was always with tinkering and I loved the satisfaction in it.”
Over the course of her journey, Patterson attended Cape Breton University and later Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, before graduating in 2014 from the power engineering program at the Nova Scotia Community College, Strait Area Campus, in Port Hawkesbury.
“I graduated from the program at the age of 50, so it was a big career change for me,” said Patterson. “I guess part of my personality is to be very adventurous and I really like the quick pace. I like extreme and I find this environment is very extreme.”
After graduation, Patterson was hired by Marine Atlantic as an engineer, a position the 54-year-old has held for more than four years.
“You have to be able to handle the heat in the engine room, especially in the hot weather, but it’s been really rewarding for me,” said Patterson.
“People tend to focus on the mechanical part of the job — that’s important — but you don’t really have to be great at that to be an engineer. You can be OK at that and you have a team of people that have strengths and weaknesses.”
Patterson admits working on the vessel for long periods of time can be difficult when it comes to juggling home and work life.
“You have to set really strong boundaries, this work really forces you to take a look at what’s really important in your life and you have to take advantage of those things that are important, and you have to schedule it,” said Patterson.
Making things even more challenging for Patterson, her husband also works on the water —he’s a chef for MV Osprey Limited, meaning he’s away from home quite often as well.
“It’s like we have a doublewhammy, but we make it work,” laughed Patterson. “My friend has always joked with me saying that’s why him and I have been together for 30 years because we’re never in the same place.”
When asked how often she sees her husband each month, Patterson said it fluctuates month by month.
“We can go three months and not see each other and then we can go in that three-month window where we might have anywhere from two or three days together, or up to a week together,” she said.
“It takes a lot of planning, but when we do have time together, everything else is organized — people will say it’s kind of a drag that you have to schedule things, but I don’t look at it that way.”
Patterson considers her fellow crew members on the boat as family.
“We always joke about our home family and our boat family,” said Patterson.
“Until you’ve experience it, working with people and that isolation factor, coupled with crisis and situations that you go through, you really build a super-strong bond with these people, even if you’re not superfond of them.”
Although she often wonders what it would be like to have a social life outside of work hours, like other couples, Patterson wouldn’t change her career for the world.
“I love working with Marine Atlantic more and more every day,” said Patterson. “I feel like I made the right decision and that’s all that matters.”