Patricia Moore-Pastides
Patricia Moore-Pastides
First Lady, University of South Carolina
Family: Husband Harris; daughter Katharine Pastides Erikson and “son-in-love” Forest; son Andrew and “daughter-in-love” Celia Rowlson-Hall
Education: B.A. in Sociology, College of the Holy Cross; Masters in Public Health, Yale University
Favorite Thing to See, Do or Eat in Columbia: “I enjoy our men’s and women’s athletics, theater, dance, McKissick Museum — plus Trustus Theatre, Columbia Museum of Art, the ballet and the philharmonic.”
Words of Wisdom: “Throughout my life, many people instilled the hope, belief and self-confidence that I could be anything I wanted to be. Inspiring another person to follow their dream is one of the greatest gifts you can give.”
Patricia Moore-Pastides is committed to helping others live healthier, happier lives. Before assuming her role as USC’s First Lady in 2008, Moore-Pastides served as a director and planner for several organizations including the S.C. Campaign to Prevent Teenage Pregnancy and the S.C Department of Health and Environmental Control. A passionate advocate of cancer prevention through nutrition, Moore-Pastides serves on several university research boards as well as the Sisters of Charity Foundation and the S.C. Ovarian Cancer Foundation. Her latest project is a cookbook, Greek Revival: Cooking for Life, promoting the delicious health benefits of a traditional Greek diet. Released last October and already in its third printing, proceeds benefit the USC Pastides Health and Sustainability Fund.
“I started testing recipes in the late 1980s during a year-long sabbatical to Greece. What inspired the idea of a cookbook was our 25th wedding anniversary — Harris and I took a week of cooking classes in Provence, France. Harris has always said he wants to retire on a Greek island, and we talked about starting a cooking school similar to the one we attended in France. A cookbook seemed the natural first step in the business plan.
“I attended a workshop at the S.C. Book Festival on how to get published and wrote a proposal, but without a cooking show or restaurant I was denied by national publishers. Then USC Press accepted the project. Since then, I’ve had many opportunities to share healthy eating habits with our students, the people of South Carolina and beyond. This is not just a cookbook — it’s a lifestyle book. I want to raise awareness about the importance of what we’re putting into our bodies.”