Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Tobey received his Army commission through the ROTC program at Purdue University in 1996. He began his career as an Infantry Officer assigned to the 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, KY where he held several platoon leader and staff positions before successfully completing the Army Special Forces Assessment and Selection program in 1999. Following graduation from the Special Forces Qualification Course and earning his green beret in 2001, Patrick was assigned to the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) based at Fort Bragg, NC. He immediately deployed to Afghanistan to lead combat operations as part of Operation Enduring Freedom and would participate in three additional combat deployments during his 21-year Army career.
Patrick has received numerous awards for leadership, service, and valor and has earned the Special Forces Tab, Ranger Tab, Master Parachutist Badge, Military Freefall Jumpmaster Badge, Air Assault Badge, and the Expert and Combat Infantryman Badges. He retired from service on September 1, 2017 in the DFW area with his wife and three sons and has been a participant in the FEI Veteran’s Transition Program since February 2017.