Patrick McNulty

Patrick McNulty passed away in the early hours of August 1st, 2026, at Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara, after a brief hospitalization brought on by complications during surgery. He was 82 years old.

Patrick McNulty was born in Evanston, Illinois to Marguerite Cleary and James McNulty in 1944. He was raised by his mother and her parents in a loving extended family. His father was a Navy pilot in the Second World War who never had the fortune to meet his only child. His mother’s headstrong intelligence showed through him throughout his life.

After attending the public New Trier High School (for which the family priest had assured his mother that he would go to hell), he attended Holy Cross College in Massachusetts for his undergraduate studies in biology. There he determined that the Jesuits had no more answers to the Big Questions of Life than he did, as he had always suspected. Post graduation he worked for the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on research vessels, collecting data on seafloor spreading along the mid-Atlantic ridge. This afforded him the opportunity to visit many ports-of-call on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.

Patrick found his way to Santa Barbara in 1971, where he began a PhD program in population biology under Dr. William Murdoch at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB). He ultimately finished with a master’s degree when life as a research scientist lost its appeal, as he found that what he enjoyed and was good at was computer programming. In 1976 he began a long career at UCSB – first in the Computer Center helping students trouble-shoot their programs, and then in the Registrar’s Office where he helped to create the University’s first online class registration system.

At UCSB he met and fell in love with Elizabeth (Betsy) Collins, after overcoming her negative first impression of him as an arrogant old guy. They married in 1979 and tortured his mother for six long years before having the first of their two sons, Devin, then Brennan three years later. Patrick was a kind and generous person who raised his wife and sons to care about other people, think about our actions, and understand how to give and receive love.

Patrick was a man of many hobbies and an inveterate data collector. He was a dedicated birder known to utter a soft “Far Out” to those within ear shot when he saw a particularly rare or unexpected bird. He rooted and suffered for his many sports teams, especially the Chicago Bears and Cubs, but also nearly all the men’s and women’s teams at UCSB. He enjoyed giving vocal encouragement to referees at the Thunderdome during basketball games. He sang in choirs from a young age and was a member of the Santa Barbara Choral Society for many years. He was also known to frequent the bars around town looking for a pool game. Patrick was a wanderer with an eye for untapped patches of dandelions to feed his pet tortoises and a reluctant, but devoted dog lover.

A lifelong disciple of the philosophy that “life is not about the shot you choose to take, but where you leave the ball afterward”. Can’t believe you’re gone, Patrick, but we will all keep up the good work in your memory.

He is survived by his wife Betsy, his sons Devin and Brennan, their wives Jennifer Thaler and Alison Quinn, and two grandchildren Felix and Olive McNulty-Thaler.

A memorial service will be held on October 24, 2026 at 2 pm at the Loma Palona Center on the UCSB campus.