PMP Hall of Fame profile: Patricia Hottel, BCE

Patricia Hottel, BCE

Patricia “Pat” Hottel, BCE, is a respected pest management trainer and leader thanks to another Pest Management Professional (PMP) Hall of Famer. Dr. Austin Frishman, who was inducted as part of the Class of 2002, put her on the path to pest control.

“Dr. Frishman is why I’m here,” she says. “He was quite the dynamic teacher and worked to actively recruit students into his program. Not too many of us started as entomology majors or were considering structural pest management as a career. I entered college as a biology major and left as an entomologist. I will forever be thankful to him for that.”

Learning and teaching have been the hallmarks of Hottel’s career. She has spent nearly five decades sharing her pest control knowledge, first at Bermuda Pest Control, and then at McCloud Services. Because of the latter company’s 2019 acquisition by Terminix, and 2022 acquisition by Rentokil, she now works for Rentokil Terminix.

“Making sure I provide technical and training support for technicians always has been important to me,” she says. As a technical manager with a primary role in fumigation, Hottel says her main job at the company is technical support. She is still involved in training, too.

“Dr. Frishman would say, ‘Your success is my success,’” Hottel explains. “As a trainer, I have used that attitude through the years to guide me in what I do. When serving in my training and technical roles, I use his words in focusing on what is really important. The goal is to make sure those I support are successful.”

As a 20-year-old female technician in the 1970s, Hottel’s work for Bermuda Pest was newsworthy. PHOTO COURTESY OF PATRICIA HOTTEL

Getting started

A native of Long Island, N.Y., Hottel attended The State University of New York at Farmingdale, where she was a biology major when she encountered Dr. Frishman, a teacher there. A major in entomology was appealing because of the different areas within entomology in which someone could specialize. These include medical entomology, horticultural entomology and urban entomology to name a few.
The summer of her freshman year, Hottel vacationed in Bermuda with some friends.

Upon returning to school, Dr. Frishman mentioned that had she told him she was going, he would have asked her to visit his friend who had a pest control company there.

“Of course, I was a freshman in college, and with my friends, and I’m not sure visiting a pest control company was top on our list,” she says with a laugh. “But it led to a discussion about Bermuda and a job offer.”

Hottel says she thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful island and credits the opportunity to work there as why she stayed with urban entomology.

After finishing her studies at Farmingdale, a two-year college, Hottel attended the University of Georgia. During her junior year, she left school to work for Bermuda Pest Control and stayed for almost three years. She handled technical support and field training.

A desire to finish her degree pulled Hottel back to school and the University of Georgia. “Once I did that, I cemented my future with urban entomology and the pest control industry,” she says.

In 1980, when an opportunity arose to work for McCloud Services, Hottel took it and didn’t look back. She stayed with the South Elgin, Ill.-based family-owned pest control company for nearly 40 years until it was acquired by Terminix.

Getting involved

Dr. Frishman taught his students about much more than entomology. Hottel says he emphasized the importance of giving back both personally and professionally.

Hottel is a founding member of what is now Professional Women in Pest Management (PWIPM), an affiliate group of the NNational Pest Management Association. “That cause has always been important to me,” she says. “Early on, there were not many women in the industry. It has improved. I marvel that today, many entomology departments tend to be heavily female.”

Hottel, second from left, with her family at Fallingwater in Mill Run, Pa.: daughter-in-law Laura; sons Ben, Robby and Justin; husband Andy; and daughter-in-law Kayleigh. PHOTO COURTESY OF PATRICIA HOTTEL

Going strong

A fixture at pest management industry meetings, Hottel enjoys learning and catching up with friends and colleagues. “It’s always a joy to go to meetings and reunite with people you know,” she says. “I’ve made so many friends throughout the years.”

She has no plans to slow down anytime soon. “As long as I enjoy what I’m doing, I’m going to stick with it,” she says.

While in her 50s, Hottel went back to school to earn her master’s degree in instructional technology from the University of Missouri.

“It wasn’t something I needed to do, but I always wanted to get an advanced degree,” she says. “I did it for me. I’m proud I went back to school to finish that goal.”

Of course, she has applied the knowledge she gained to her current job.

“The job has morphed and changed over the years, and I feel like I do well with change,” Hottel says. “I thrive on the new experiences and the ability to share those lessons with others.”

One constant in her life has been her husband, Andy, a retired electrical engineer to whom she has been married 42 years. They have three sons — Robby, a horticulturist; Justin, a sales rep in the graphic arts/printing field; and Dr. Ben Hottel, BCE, technical services manager for Rollins Inc.

Dr. Frishman has kept in touch with Hottel throughout her career and offered congratulations upon news of her induction. Whenever Hottel is in southern Florida, she makes an effort to catch up in person. Next time, they will have something to celebrate.

“It’s just amazing what a great mentor and friend Frishman has been,” she says, “to all of his students.”