Nov. 2024 Alum Spotlight: Patricia Daily Harrison '59

Pat Daily Harrison ’59 has never met a stranger. Whether she is welcoming someone at her business, waiting at the doctor’s office or volunteering on a committee, she will strike up a conversation with just about anyone. And after more than 55 years in real estate in Southern Indiana, she has plenty of stories to tell.

“I’m outspoken, and I feel like every day is a new day,” Pat said. “… I like to have fun with what I do and with what I have.”

Pat grew up in a shotgun house in the South End, attending Holy Name for grade school. Her dad was a machinist, and her mom was a nurse. While their family didn’t have a lot of money growing up, it was always the fun place to be.

When it became time to pick a high school, Pat said, “I chose Pres because it was on the bus line and all of my friends went there.”

Pat said her time at Pres was wonderful, and she had good teachers. “Pres was small enough that you got to know your friends. The teachers became your friends because the classes weren’t that big or if they were, we didn’t seem to think they were.”

Pat said she loved math, and she was one of the “stamp girls” who would go to Belknap’s and collect stamps for the nuns. Back then she said she was shy and always took all of her books home to study. She recalls finishing in the top 10 of her class.

Pat said that the worst thing she ever did at Pres involved wearing rubber eye lashes. She put them on at school one day and “looked like Minnie Mouse. I thought they were the best thing!” However, when she went to Glee Club that day, Sister Mary Ruth was not as fond of them. “When she said, ‘Patricia!’ I knew I was in trouble!” She said she stayed after school and wrote lines, saying she would not disturb the class. “But my friends thought it was funny!”

After graduating from Presentation Academy in 1959, Pat attended Nazareth College, now Spalding University, and studied to be a medical technologist. However, she soon learned that sticking people with needles was not for her. She briefly worked as a substitute teacher, but did not enjoy it.

She developed an interest in real estate and traveled by Greyhound Bus from New Albany to Indianapolis to take the real estate license class. “It stopped at every stop, and I almost missed the test!” she said. She arrived at the building “running like Rocky,” and the woman at the door said if she was one more minute late, she wouldn’t have let her take the test.

Pat earned her real estate license in 1969, and despite having no mentor to guide her, she worked her way up toward owning her own company in 1980. She opened her first office on 2226 East Spring Street in New Albany and now is located on Charlestown Road.

Pat was the first woman realtor to become president of the Home Builders Association in 1996 and is still on the board as an historian. “I feel so blessed that I’ve known all of those builders, and, by doing that, it increases what you can do and what you can’t do with real estate because you know who has the money and who doesn’t.”

Pat met the love of her life, Kenny Smith, in the early 1980s. They attended St John the Baptist Catholic Church in Starlight, Indiana. They were together for more than 33 years until his passing on May 22, 2015.

Pat strongly values her Catholic faith. When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with her son, Tim, and giving back to the community. She calls herself “The Connector” because she is the person to call if you want something done.

Pat has hosted a Halloween Party for the community since 1986, as well as the Harvest Homecoming home decorating contest since the 1980s. She has cleaned streets and planted hundreds of trees in New Albany parks. She served as a commissioner and worked on the Bicentennial of New Albany, plus served on the Floyd County Library Board and One Southern Indiana, the economic development organization and chamber of commerce serving Clark and Floyd counties.

Pat is also a generous philanthropist. She sponsored the Norton Cancer Institute Pat Harrison Resource Center in Jeffersonville after her own experience with breast cancer. The Resource Center features community support groups; classes and seminars; individual educational sessions with oncology-certified nurses; art therapy; nutritional counseling and more.

She has contributed funds to Ivy Tech Sellersburg, sponsoring the Pat Harrison Fine Arts + Design Gallery, as well as funding the campus clock tower plaza.

In 2015, Pat was awarded the Distinguished Hoosier Award from then-Governor Mike Pence. The Distinguished Hoosier Award is one of the highest awards given to Indiana citizens by the governor. It is awarded to those who distinguish themselves by significant contributions to their communities and whose qualities and actions endear them in the hearts and minds of Hoosiers.

When asked what advice she would give current Pres Girls, Pat said, “The people you run with determine how you’re going to be.”

High school is the most exciting time of your life, she said. “You’ve got all the abilities out there and choices,” she said. “Take your time but listen to the people around you because you’re at a good school with good people and you’re going to learn from them.”