Patty Pacey and Chuck Neinas: Dedicated Philanthropists

Patty Pacey

Patty was born in Minnesota, and at the age of 10, her family moved to the west coast of Florida in the Sarasota area. Patty attended the University of Florida in Gainesville, where she earned her PhD in Economics.

Patty began her time at the University of Florida as an education major, planning to teach high school math, but professors saw her potential in the field of economics and motivated her to pursue her PhD. An inspiration to women, Patty was at that time the only female pursuing her PhD in economics at the University of Florida, and upon her completion of the program, Patty moved to Washington DC to work for the Congressional Budget Office in its second year of existence.

After some time in DC, Patty ventured west with the plan of spending a year or two in Colorado before returning to Florida. Within a month, Patty fell in love with the state of Colorado and called her mother to say, "sell my spot in Florida, I'm never coming back."

Upon settling in Colorado, Patty began teaching at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs and eventually moved to its main campus in Boulder. Patty would spend her Friday nights with other students and professors watching PBS NewsHour. Each of them would encourage each other to give during the pledge drives, which began Patty's 42-year giving history with Rocky Mountain PBS, after making her first gift of $25 in 1979.

Patty's dedication to Rocky Mountain PBS expanded beyond giving, as she served on the board of directors from 2014 to 2020 in leadership roles as both the treasurer and vice chair.

Patty enjoys the Rocky Mountain PBS programs MASTERPIECE, the British produced mysteries, nature, and history programming and encourages others to watch Rocky Mountain PBS.

Chuck Neinas

Chuck, who was born and raised in Wisconsin, served in the navy before graduating from the University of Wisconsin. Chuck, who feels like he never really had a job due to his love for his work, dedicated his career to college athletics, specializing in football.

Chuck was a leader in the world of college athletics, serving as assistant executive director of the NCAA to commissioner of the Big Eight Conference to executive director of the College Football Association. In addition to Chuck's leadership in the world of sports, Chuck has worn many hats sharing his leadership skills on the board of directors and guiding other nonprofit and for-profit organizations to great successes.

Chuck, who is a history buff, enjoys the Rocky Mountain PBS programs FRONTLINE and American Experience as well as the PBS NewsHour, which he believes provides a broad coverage of important stories. Chuck jokes the only thing PBS is lacking is football!

Patty and Chuck enjoy how Rocky Mountain PBS captures the interest of people in all stages of life from the children's programming to the news. The two grew up on different sides of the political fence, which draws them to the PBS NewsHour as they enjoy hearing unbiased stories; this is what they believe democracy is all about. PBS gives them a political balance, as they are self-described news junkies.

Patty and Chuck believe in the power of education and public media, where their philanthropic interests lie, and believe their legacy would be the opportunity for others to learn. As stated by Patty, PBS entertains while it educates children and informs adults.

In addition to Patty and Chuck's incredible annual support and estate contribution, they also played an integral role in Rocky Mountain Public Media's historic capital campaign by making a transformational gift.

They continue to live their life to its fullest every day. Avid travelers, Patty and Chuck have visited every continent in the world and hope to get back to travelling as health and safety allow. On any given day, they enjoy spending time with their two children, six grandchildren, Patty's siblings, the Neinas family, and their beloved Samoyed husky, Scarlett.