Librería Samer Atenea
Kálamo Books
Librería Elías (Asturias)
Librería Kolima (Madrid)
Librería Proteo (Málaga)
Life does not always follow the path we expect. Sometimes the unexpected path leads somewhere we never could have imagined.From an Iowa Farm to Japan is the true story of Rick Patrick, a 17-year-old Iowa farm boy who joined the U.S. Air Force with no idea where life would take him. After 20 years of Air Force service, he began an entirely new career in international business in Japan and eventually became the president of the Japanese subsidiary of an international company.Patrick joined the U.S. Air Force in 1971 at the age of 17. His assignments included Kadena Air Base, Okinawa; Yokota Air Base, Japan; Grand Forks AFB, North Dakota; Peterson Field, Colorado; and Taegu Air Base, Korea. During a 20-year Air Force career, he rose to the rank of Senior Master Sergeant. Along the way, he met his future wife, Terumi, in Japan. They married, welcomed their daughter, and began building a future together far from the Iowa farm where his story began.After retiring from the Air Force, Patrick’s life took another unexpected turn. With no previous corporate experience, he joined a Japanese automotive parts manufacturer and entered the worlds of engineering, overseas business, and international management. His work included projects involving the Chevrolet Corvette C5, Toyota Camry, and Tokyo DisneySea, as well as the development of an innovative drum-in-hat automotive parking brake system.His second career took him from engineering and product development to international management and corporate leadership. Working across cultures, he learned to navigate Japanese business practices while drawing on the leadership lessons developed during his years in the Air Force. Patrick later became President and Managing Director of the Japanese subsidiary of a Swedish multinational company, a position he held for 10 years.The cover photograph carries special meaning. Patrick took the photograph himself while personally flying a Cessna over his family’s farm in Iowa. It was civilian flying, separate from his duties in the U.S. Air Force. Looking down from the air at the farm where his story began, he photographed the place that would later symbolize the remarkable distance his life had taken him-from an Iowa farm to a life and career in Japan.This is more than a story about an Air Force career or success in business. It is a story about family, service, leadership, a second career, international business, life across cultures, and the unexpected opportunities that can appear at life’s turning points. Patrick writes candidly about successes as well as setbacks, difficult decisions, and the people who helped shape his life.One decision can change the course of a life.When Patrick joined the U.S. Air Force at 17, the Iowa farm boy could not have imagined that the decision would eventually lead him to Japan, a family, a career in engineering and international business, and ultimately the president’s office.Even when life does not go according to plan, unexpected possibilities may lie ahead. From an Iowa Farm to Japan tells that story through Rick Patrick’s experiences-from his boyhood on an Iowa farm, through 20 years of service in the U.S. Air Force, to a second career in international business in Japan.
