Roberta (Bobbie) Patterson, a hospitality industry leader and former executive director of Boise CVB, has passed away at the age of 91.
Patterson was born in 1933 to Elmer and Vivian Byrne in Echo, Utah, before moving to North Platte, Nebraska, at the age of six. Her father’s work eventually led her family to Twin Falls, Idaho, where she finished her senior year of high school.
She starting working for the Boise CVB in 1982, eventually working her way up to serving as executive director, where she spent most of her 35-year career. In 1998, Patterson also served as the first female president of the International Association of Conventions and Visitors Bureaus (now Destinations International), was inducted into the Destinations International Hall of Fame in 2015 and was once named Boise’s Distinguished Person of the Year.
After her retirement, Patterson operated the Arrowhead RV Park in Cascade, Idaho, until she was 89, actively writing grants on behalf of the RV Parks in Cascade and serving on chamber of commerce boards when she passed.
“Her life is a testament to the dedication of investing in the betterment of a community and in the cultivation of meaningful relationships,” read part of Patterson’s obituary.
Read her full obituary here.
