January 31, 1927 – March 6, 2024
After a life filled with much love and curiosity, Pat, always willing to seek out new adventures, has outdone herself this time!
Born in Port Arthur, Pat grew up on Regent St. and began her lifelong quest for knowledge at Prospect Street School. One of her few regrets in life was having to leave PACI before graduating to join the war effort to help support her family and country. A true ‘Rosie the Riveter’, Pat worked at the Shipyards assembling canopies for Hawker Hurricanes. Later, after graduating from business school, Pat entered the retail sector – first in sales, then bookkeeping and eventually management.
It was during these years that she met the love of her life, Douglas, at the Rose Tea Room on Court Street in the summer of 1941 and took him up on his offer to service her bicycle. Thus began their 75 year love affair and set in motion their five year plan – marriage in 1947, son Mitchell, ’53, daughter Laura, ’58, trip across North America in the new Volkswagen van ’63, and a new house on Dawson Rd. and camp on Hawkeye Lake, ’67-68. It was around this time that Pat left retail and entered the medical office field, retiring as office manager in the late ’80’s.
A dearly loved daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, mother-in-law, auntie, friend, and honourary family member to many, Pat will be missed by a large contingent including: son Mitch (Cathie Colquhoun); daughter Laura Hay (Ed); grandchildren Brianna (Geoff Wright), Beatrix (Travis Pawlak), Christa (Matt Duquette); great-grandchildren Callum and Isla Wright; nephew Ted Baxter (Nonie) and family; and the Winnipeg Fridays. There to greet her as she moves beyond this mortal coil are her husband Doug and a cast of many other family members and friends.
A woman ahead of her time in so many respects, a lifelong learner and voracious reader, Pat’s interests were varied and her curiosity constant. She would have been the ideal university student given different circumstances and a warm climate campus. A life filled with travel, including 30 years of Florida winters, kept Pat and Doug active and engaged.
Pat was a remarkable seamstress, though she would deny it, a great card player, smooth dancer, skilled house builder, early environmentalist, and devoted gardener. Pat, a loyal NDPer, was proud to have sat beside Tommy Douglas at a benefit supper and was later awarded an NDP lifetime membership. A savvy investor, after reading an article in the Globe and Mail, Pat had her broker, despite his protests, purchase shares in a fledgling cannabis company. Stock value soared ‘high’ and a great story was born – Gramma owns a grow-op! Pat also excelled at grandmotherhood. While the old adage, “the reason grandparents and grandchildren get along so well is that they have a common enemy” is not a perfect match here, GPat had a very special bond with each of her three girls which only got stronger as the years passed. Pat saw parts of herself reflected in each of them and they in her. Her dedication to correspondence ensured that this love grew despite the times apart! Her distinctive, wonderful handwriting added another endearing element to her thoughtful, caring words enjoyed by countless friends and family.
It has been a year since Pat’s passing … a time of many tears, laughs, wee drams of Scotch, giraffes to care for, and stories shared – sometimes all at once! Although it was a timely exit from this worldly realm, we continue to miss that stubborn, sometimes silly, creative, elegant, strong presence that graced our lives for so long. Always delighted with life, Mom lived hers very, very well!
A family celebration of life was held at the family camp on Hawkeye Lake last August.
Condolences may be made through www.nwfainc.com
