Pat Seeburg

A memorial scholarship endowment honoring Pat Seeburg, a longtime Powell High School home economics teacher, has been established by her family through the Northwest College Foundation.

The scholarship fund will provide grants to eligible part-time or full-time students at Northwest College who are Wyoming high school graduates majoring in math or education. Seeburg, who taught in Wyoming for some 40 years, died of pneumonia in 2015 at the age of 85.

Her family added gifts to memorial contributions to build the scholarship fund to the required $10,000 level of an endowment administered by the NWC Foundation. The family wants to provide community and former students with the opportunity to add to the fund honoring Seeburg. Interested persons can contact Shelby Wetzel, executive director of the NWC Foundation at 231 W. Sixth St. in Powell.

Seeburg earned a bachelor’s degree in math education from the University of Wyoming in 1952 and completed her teaching credential soon after. By an accident of timing, her teaching career turned in the direction of home economics.

“When she got out of school, there were no jobs for math teachers in Wyoming at that time,” a niece, Nancy Timberlake in California, explained. So Seeburg accepted a teaching position in high school home economics at Egbert, then in Lingle.

“She was an excellent cook and seamstress, so it was a perfect fit for her,” Timberlake said. “She loved it.”

Seeburg later earned a second bachelor’s degree in home economics. She taught home economics at Powell High School for 29 years between 1960 and 1989.

Born in Rock Springs in 1930, Pat spent her early years there and graduated from Rock Springs High School. She contracted polio at a young age and underwent extensive, difficult and painful treatment, including confinement in an iron lung. The disease ultimately left her with a twisted spine and compromised her ability to walk. 

Despite her illnesses, Seeburg never complained or blamed anyone for her misfortune and never considered herself disabled in any way. She exhibited an attitude of “Don’t bother about me. I can manage.”

Seeburg was honored by American Association of University Women early in 2015 for more than 50 years of membership. She was an avid reader and enthusiastic book club participant. She also found time to become an accomplished pianist.

— By Dave Bonner