Any visit to the Beck Agricultural Center will likely turn up Dave Petritz, 63, retired director of Purdue Extension. If you show up unexpectedly, you’ll probably hear a Jimmy Buffett tune blaring — Petritz says the only way to play Buffett’s music is loudly.

When Petritz retired in June 2007, his plan was to sell the family farm in Illinois and retire to West Lafayette.

But first he offered his services to Purdue Agriculture.

Randy Woodson (at the time dean of agriculture, now the university provost) decided to make Petritz a special assistant to the dean. “His first idea was for me to be the guardian of the Beck Agricultural Center, and I accepted the challenge,” Petritz says.

The 20,000-square-foot center, which is part of the Purdue Agronomy Center for Research and Education, was dedicated in October 2007. It provides facilities for classes, research and meetings, with four classrooms, a multipurpose room, a conference room and a food serving area.

“I do everything and anything that I can possibly do,” Petritz says. “That includes schedule meetings, give tours, make coffee, create ideas to meet what the customer wants, work with caterers, work the audio system and room arrangements, pick up trash, be a server, and clean.”

What is the one thing he doesn’t do? Petritz jokes that he won’t clean the toilets, but only because he isn’t qualified.

Petritz may have retired as Purdue Extension director, associate vice provost for engagement and the interim head of the department of 4-H youth development, but he wasn’t by any means ready to slow down.

“I was not ready to sit down. I wanted to be involved and help the college in any way possible,” he says. “I love people interaction and I knew that is part of what I wanted to start doing, and I had worked in Extension for 35 years, which is on the other side of what I am doing now. Combine all of those, and I’m at the best possible site. I thoroughly enjoy what I am doing.”

Petritz has been a major part of making the Beck Center successful.

“When I started there wasn’t any flooring, piping wasn’t completed, the kitchen is always being added to, and worst of all, progress was slow,” Petritz says.

Now the Beck Center is up and running, and the months of November, December and January were booked almost every day, including weekends.

“Weekends are included in this job,” Petritz says. “If I am here cleaning, then I strongly believe that others can be in here holding their meetings, because I want to do everything possible to establish the Beck Center and to make it successful.”

Petritz says the key part of making the meetings successful is thinking ahead and planning, such as arranging for wireless service, overhead projectors and computers.

“We try to make every conference and meeting taking place at the Beck Center comfortable and successful,” he says.

The next challenge Petritz faces is booking paying customers, since rental rates took effect in January. That will be the true test of whether the facility is really established and if people will still come.

However, some standards will not change. For example, the Beck Center is open for companies and organizations outside of agriculture, but it will not book weddings or social events.

How did Petritz, who earned his bachelor’s and doctoral degrees in agricultural economics from the University of Illinois, become so involved with Purdue Agriculture?

In 1972 Petritz joined Purdue in the agricultural economics department. He became department head in ’83, Extension program leader for agriculture and natural resources in ’89, and director of Extension in ’99. In ’02 he was also named the associate vice provost for engagement, and in ’04 he was appointed interim department head for 4-H youth development.

“There were many things I was proud be to a part of,” Petritz says. “But what stands out was in the 1980s during the financial crisis, I helped with the Family Agricultural Resource Management program through Purdue Extension.”

Petritz says Extension personnel loaded up large computers with financial programs that analyzed farm income and expenses, and sat down with farmers and helped them during that time of economic turmoil.

By 2007, the time had come for him to settle down, or so he thought.

“There were three reasons why I believe it was time for me to step down,” Petritz says. “First, it had come time to sell the family farm; second it had come time within Extension for key administration positions to retire; and lastly, even though I have never left Purdue during my career, I had changed jobs, and I felt that it was time to do that again.”

Petritz says he doesn’t like to get comfortable in a job; he is much happier always having a challenge.

“The Beck Center was a surprise challenge, because when I retired all that was on the horizon was to dispose of the farm and help my daughter with her new house,” he says.

If asked, he may say that his other job title at the moment is professional mover.

Since retirement, he has moved his son twice, his daughter three times, and he volunteered his service to a family living in West Lafayette.

“Well, I’m just an ‘I will help you guy,’” he quips.

Petritz’s outside interests include old tractors and cars.

“I don’t restore them, but they bring back fond memories, so I can’t get rid of them,” he says. “To date I have a 1940 Farmall tractor from the farm, a 1972 Cutlass Supreme Oldsmobile Oldsmobile that I drive around, and a 1950 Chevrolet half-ton truck.”

And if you drop by his house to see what’s up, you might hear a Jimmy Buffett song playing loudly as he works on his vintage vehicles.

Contact Petritz at dpetritz@purdue.edu