Pat Monahan Finishes 50th Year on the Job

Pat Monahan has come a long way from storing and shipping broomcorn bales in the hot Texas sun like he did every summer of high school and college from the mid 1950s to early 1960s.

After graduating from Notre Dame with a degree in Chemical Engineering, receiving his masters in business from the University of Chicago and a stint at Sandia Corp in Albuquerque, NM and IBM in Chicago, he eventually came back to work in the family business. And 50 years ago in June of 1974, he started his run that continues today.

“When you are the last to join the company, you get all the jobs no one else wants. Collecting receivables, inventory controls, advertising,” said Pat. Eventually, he found himself selling broom and mop supplies.

In the 1980’s, a good friend of his father and mentor, Fred Leventhal, steered him into the mop hardware business. In doing so, he developed a source for the hardware overseas that remains today. Pat attributes the longevity and success of that partnership on ‘Lack of greed on both sides and total honesty.’

In 2010, he formed Monahan Partners, Inc., which derived from the Thomas Monahan Company, the company his Grandfather started in 1922. The company now specializes in light assembly of mopsticks of wood, metal, and fiberglass handles or selling the components separate for self-assembly.

He has spent a majority of his years working alongside 2 of his brothers, Tim and Jim. Since 2013, he has worked with his son Kevin who is currently serving as the company’s President. “I love working with my son and spending time with my brothers.”

At 83 years young, Pat added, “One of the great things about owning your own company is that you don’t have to retire.”

Pat’s current title at the company is ‘Ambassador’, a role that comes natural to him. He owns 9 patents in the cleaning industry and the ever civic-minded man is currently working on bringing a ‘Broom Palace’ to Arcola to commemorate the towns rich history in brooms and a similar castle that was built downtown in the late 1800s.