Joe Patti - A Beloved Pensacola Icon
The Captain at the Helm
With all that Jo Patti's owner Frank Michael Patti Sr. has to do in any given day, he remains a warm and welcoming man, who is a hilariously fun and entertaining character - not unlike any famous figure who ever graced a stage.
In the nearly two hour break Frank took from his truly chaotic day, to simply visit with me, I honestly think he all but pried open - an enormous place in my heart for this incredible man. I can't think of a single man, woman or child in all of Pensacola, that I have more enjoyed getting to know. He genuinely made me feel like there was not another soul on earth for that moment in time. Even though there could not have been less than two dozen interruptions: phone calls, problems to solve, and a myriad of his employees, rushing in and out of his office with increasingly pressing matters, for which his personal attention was urgently required, Frank seemed almost impervious to stress, and incapable of entering into the flurry and storms around him; he instead answered every matter, and dealt with each issue with an incredible clarity and efficiency; all while never missing a beat in our conversations.
When our time together had ended, and our business had concluded, as I was walking through the parking lot to leave, I must confess that I was both exhausted by the hustle and bustle of a day in the life of Joe Patti's Captain Frank - and I was also inexplicably refreshed and exhilarated.
I left that short moment in time - in the life of a true Pensacola Icon - feeling like I could conquer the world. In witnessing this calm example of a life lived both in the midst of the storm, and simultaneously in sincere and genuine peace. What a man!!!
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