Southwestern Adventist University President Ana Patterson is guest speaker at the Keene Chamber of Commerce 29th birthday celebration luncheon at noon Thursday, July 28, at the Keene Community Center, 1000 N. Old Betsy Road in Keene.

Doors open at 11:30. The meal will be catered by SWAU Chef Sualua Tupolo. Admission is $18 per person for those who RSVP by noon Tuesday, July 26, at 817-556-2995 or info@keenechamber.org. Admission at the door is $20.

Attendees can expect birthday surprises as the chamber celebrates its founding on July 1, 1993.

Patterson graduated from SWAU with a Bachelor of Business Administration in long-term healthcare in 1999 and a Master of Business Administration in 2012. She is both the University’s first female and first Hispanic president.

Patterson most recently worked as the special assistant to the president for the University, has nearly a decade of teaching experience as a business professor at the University, served as chair of the University’s diversity and inclusion committee, and was named Educator of the Year for the 2016-17 school year. She has been an active member of the community surrounding the University for the past two decades, acting as a board member for a number of organizations serving children and as president of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Johnson County’s board of directors.

Patterson and her husband, Greg, have three children. The family enjoys being outdoors and travel.