“It was a small town. We didn’t have a football team … But it was all I knew,” Codd said.

On weekends, she’d go to her friends’ houses.

Many of her close friends had different heritages than Codd, including Portuguese and Japanese.

She didn’t realize until later in life the value of being around so many cultures and people.

These days, she’s far from Hawaii’s warm waters.

Codd is a longtime resident of Anacortes who has dedicated the past 25 years to serving the community as a health care worker.

“I have had the pleasure of working with Patty for over 15 years. She is an amazing person and exemplifies all Island Health (values). Her work within the community and with our patients demonstrates her compassion and respect,” Island Health CEO Elise Cutter said in an email to the Anacortes American.

“Patty’s commitment to our community and Island Health is greatly appreciated, and we are thrilled to see her hard work and dedication recognized.”

Codd now serves as Island Health’s result management director.

She started with Island Health in 2008, after her previous employer was sold to the hospital.

Codd collaborates with community partners, ensuring clinical quality, improving patient experience and managing projects.

Her job is the culmination of a lifetime goal.

Codd first dreamed of working in health care administration after seeing people work at Hilo Hospital in Hawaii.

“I was one of those lucky ones who knew what I wanted going into college,” she said.

Codd attended to Eastern Washington University, where she met her husband Dan Codd who had grown up on a wheat farm.

“I fell in love with a wheat farmer,” she said with a smile. “And we built a relationship and life together.”

The two visited Anacortes and knew it was the right town for them. So they moved their life here.

Patty Codd took a job at a local health care clinic, while her husband did research and development for de-icing products.

After a month in Anacortes, the grocery clerk knew Patty Codd by name, and she knew they’d made the right decision.

“It was a good move for us, raising our kids here. We knew all our kids’ friends’ families,” she said. “When you’re raising little kids, the school system becomes your social life. So I’d volunteer in the kids’ classrooms and was involved in SABA (Seahawks Athletic Booster Association) all through high school. That was a great experience.

“I feel like I live in a community that is so supportive of Island Health, and I can directly impact the well-being of the community with the work I do. It’s incredibly motivating and fulfilling because it matters.”

One program Patty Codd is proud of organizing is mental health counseling and crisis support for school district employees and students.

She’s also glad to volunteer time with the Population Health Trust, an advisory board to Skagit Public Health. The Population Health Trust is dedicated to improving access to care, food security and other causes.

As she enters her 25th year working in health care in Anacortes, Patty Codd is taking a step back to think about how her upbringing impacts the values she brings to her career.

She values the lessons her parents taught her in Hawaii.

She enjoys bringing those values to her job, whether it’s the generosity she learned from her mother or the acceptance of others she learned from her father.

“I get to work with an amazing group of people who come to work every day and are committed to taking good care of their patients and each other,” she said. “It’s a beautiful environment, even when it’s hard to be in health care post-pandemic … I get to go home every day and feel like I did something that made a difference. That’s a good feeling.”