We’re looking forward to introducing you to Megan Patton. Check out our conversation below.
Megan, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What is a normal day like for you right now?
If you can believe it, the role of serving on the Raleigh City Council is a part time job! That means that every day looks a bit differently, but I dedicate my Tuesdays to primarily council work.
The first thing I do, while waiting for the coffee to brew is check in on my day job. Knowing that I’ll be mostly offline from that role, I check in to ensure everything is set for the day, responding to time sensitive emails, for example.
After getting my daughter off to school, I head downtown to City Hall. If time permits, I may grab a coffee at Union Special, one of my favorites!
From there, my day is usually back-to-back meetings. They range from meetings with constituents on very local topics such as getting a stop sign in their neighborhood to meetings with staff to study up on policy to our official public meetings where we vote on a variety of topics. Sometimes the meetings are very fun site visits to future parks or a mock fire fighter training.
Council days tend to finish whenever the work is done – sometimes 5, sometimes 10 or 11. It really just depends. Then I head home to decompress with a beer and a quiet cooking show.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I serve on the Raleigh City Council. I represent District B, which is the far northeast corner of Raleigh, covering thoroughfares like Capital Blvd, Falls of the Neuse, Louisburg Rd and parts of New Bern Ave.
In past lives I have been an elementary school teacher, server, dog washer, and factory worker. I bring all those experiences, along with being a Mom, to my role on the council. I want to build a city that works for us and will work for future generations.
Being on City Council is fascinating work, especially in a growing city like Raleigh. There is always something new to learn or study up on, some new solution to an age old question. It is an exciting time to be in Raleigh and I’m glad to be a small part of that!
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
When I was growing up, I thought the boxes we were placed in were much smaller. I was commonly thought of as being studious or nerdy. I think I thought you could only be ‘the smart kid’.
Of course, time teaches us so much. You can be studious and silly, nerdy and compassionate, driven and warm. And what a richness that brings to both our relationships with others, but also with ourselves.
When did you last change your mind about something important?
Serving on the City Council is constant work of evolving your opinion based on new information, feedback and data. I can think of several council topics where I held a certain position, and over time evolved to a different one. One current example is that I’m evolving on our use of Social Districts in the city. These are areas where you can carry a beer or cocktail around the area in an open container so long as you purchased it from a participating restaurant. As research continues to emerge suggesting how bad drinking really is, I find myself less inclined toward decisions that incentivize drinking alcohol. I do drink alcohol myself, so I’m not turning into a Tea Totaler, but I’m more reluctant to expand social districts than I was in the past.
I’m always open to change and learning; so perhaps by the time you read this, I’ll have evolved again!
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What do you believe is true but cannot prove?
That all the candy corn in the world was produced in the 1950s and it just continues to get distributed each year from the same gigantic cache.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: When do you feel most at peace?
In the garden, or in the kitchen baking bread.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://pattonforraleigh.com
- Instagram: @pattonforraleigh
- Twitter: @patton4raleigh
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pattonforraleigh
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PattonForRaleigh
