About Me

I’m Hallee Patterson, I was born and raised in Chicago, but now l call Puerto Rico home. My husband and I moved here in 2012 when we both retired. When  people ask me “Why PR?” I always respond,”Why not paradise?”

While living in Chicago, I wrote columns for the community newsletter. At 48 I went to college with my daughter, and at 51, I graduated from DePaul University with a degree in comparative religion. While I was attending DePaul, I became the care giver to my parents. I feel this time with them gave me more empathy and a clear insight as to how to be a good listener. For ten years I donated my time to the Chicago Architectural Foundation and the Chicago History Museum as a docent/tour guide.This training and interest in history carried forward to my new home in Puerto Rico.where I wanted to learn about the island’s rich history. As I walk the streets of Old San Juan I’m struck by the many statues of historical leaders, and I decided I had to learn about them. I’ve written about each one , there are eighty-four.  Interestingly,  only two are women.

In Puerto Rico, my husband and I renovated a ruin in Old San Juan. We had hopes of growing vegetables on our roof. But, the sun, wind  and the sand killed everything we grew. We  decided we wanted a farm. In Chicago we always had a vegetable garden, so we thought we knew the ins and outs of farming. However, after we purchased our 2 1/2 acre farm in Caguas we realized we needed help. We had a mentor in the gentleman that we bought the farm from. My husband took a beginning farmer class to get us started.  After a lot of trial and error we are now learning about hydroponic farming.  

When I am not writing, I enjoy playing the violin, doing jigsaw puzzles , reading, playing with my dog Quinn and learning about new farm technology.