Ganpat Patel


Ganpat Iswarbhai Patel also known as PAT Patel is an Indian American hi-tech entrepreneur, businessman, and philanthropist. He is the founder of Cherokee International, and has been President and CEO before retiring.
Shri Patel is the President and Patron-in-Chief of Ganpat University, a higher education university located in the Mehsana district of North Gujarat. Shri Patel is globally recognized professionally for his contributions to the field of electrical engineering and personally for his philanthropy, especially relating to his endeavors in higher education.
Pat Patel spent his career in the engineering field, first with Lockheed Martin and Burroughs Corporation, then he founded Cherokee International in Tustin in 1978.
Patel has been honoured with the Padma Shri award.

Early life and education

Ganpatbhai Patel is the son of Shri Iswarbhai Patel and Smt Menaben Patel from the Patidar community. He was born in the village of Bhunav, Sidhhapur in North Gujarat. Ganpat Patel was born on 12 January 1945 in Bhunav Siddhpur, Patan district, North Gujarat, India. After completing his primary school education in his village Bhunav, Siddhapur and high school education in Swami Vivekanand School, Junagadh, In 1965, at the age of 20, Shri Patel moved to the United States of America to pursue his dreams of higher education, leaving behind his wife Smt Manjuben Patel and unborn daughter, Rita. He was awarded a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from California Polytechnic University, Pomona.

Career

Patel got his first job in an aviation industry company Lockheed Martin but he lost this job soon due to recession in aviation sector He was lucky to get the immediate job offer from Abbott Laboratories in Culver City of Los Angeles in 1971. There after he also got an opportunity in borroughs computer and he acquired many useful skills which gave a great push to the tenets of entrepreneurship in him. In 1978, Shri Patel, with the help of his wife, founded Cherokee International, Inc., a power supply company. Cherokee secured relationships with businesses like IBM, CISCO, Motorola, and Hewlett Packard and opened manufacturing facilities in the United States, India, Belgium, and Mexico. Patel retired from his professional career in 2004.

Personal life

His wife, Manju Patel, is a social worker and philanthropic. She runs a sainik school for girls on her name Smt M.G. Patel Sainik School for Girls in North Gujarat, India and making sure that 400+ girls get their schooling education every year through this military school. She does philanthropic work with the help of her husband Ganpat Patel and her family.
Supported by his wife Smt Manjuben and motivated by his three daughters, Rita, Anita and Asha as well as his seven grandchildren, Patel has started a “सेवा यज्ञ” social upliftment through education and established various institutions in India which can impart quality learning to Indian students.

Awards and honours