Patricia Dorony

Pat Dorony, 87, practiced intercessory prayer, lifting the worries and hopes of others to a higher power. She prayed with and for those in need, offering love, comfort, and encouragement. Whether silently, aloud, or gathered in prayer with others, her words carried deep compassion—and her faith and support touched every life around her.

Pat’s Story

Pat’s story began in London in 1938. At age nine, she boarded a plane to America wearing a stewardess dress sewn by her aunt—a stylish start to a life that would be anything but ordinary. She landed in Cleveland, Ohio, with a suitcase full of courage and a heart that would forever carry the sorrow of being parted from loved ones.

One of her first decisions as an adult was to become a U.S. citizen at 18—a choice she made with conviction and pride, embracing the country she had long called home.

After graduating from North Royalton High School, she married George Dorony, an Air Force veteran, at 19, two weeks before her 20th birthday. A year later, with a newborn daughter in tow, they packed up and drove to Oklahoma so George could train at the national FAA Academy. Their housing was a run-down Army barrack, but Pat made it feel like home—because that’s what she did. She could turn four walls and a pile of dime-store pillows into a sanctuary.

In 1961, they settled in North Olmsted, Ohio, where they raised three daughters: Laurie, Trisha, and Jackie. Pat was the kind of mother who didn’t just make a delicious dinner—she gathered her family at the table, knowing the importance of coming together in both good and hard times. She was a homemaker in the truest sense, with a superpower for turning daily routines into rituals of love and belonging. Her children knew that no matter what the world threw at them, they had a soft place to land.

After 53 years of marriage and caring for George through a long illness, Pat found herself living alone for the first time. For a while, she felt adrift. Then, drawing from profound personal strength, she rebuilt. She found happiness in small things, stayed curious, and kept loving fiercely. Her grandchildren—Katie (John), Alysse (Rob), and Meg (Ryan)—and great-grandchildren—Nora, Jack, and Julia—brought her laughter and light. Her home remained a place of comfort, and she remained a grounding force through heartaches and celebrations.

Her Special Gifts

Pat loved books, libraries, Turner Classic movies and the special thrill of discovering something new. She had a thing for flowers—especially the Turner-Classic Movies, ones that marked the start of a season—and a particular fondness for pretty glass. Rummage sales were her treasure hunts, and her glass collection, placed just so in the sunlight or used to hold little objects and potpourri, reflected her gift for finding the extraordinary in the ordinary.

Faith and Adoration

A child of wartime, Pat carried with her the memory of sheltering beneath her Catholic school in London whenever the threat of bombs loomed overhead. She remembered the nuns singing to pass the time and ease the fear. Experiences like these leave indelible, life-altering marks. For Pat, they shaped a belief system fixed in the conviction that life’s meaning is never found in meanness or in playing any part in the harm of others.

Her Bibles were filled with underscores and notes to herself—evidence of a faith that was not static, but ever-evolving. She believed that when love for God is built on expanding awareness and understanding from within, that love also grows outward and becomes visible in how we care for others. For Pat, this was the essence of Christ’s teaching: to love our neighbors because we are all made in God’s likeness and share in the same divine inheritance of hope and dignity.

For herself and her family, faith welcomed, healed, and embraced. Never a badge of pride, she made faith a devotion lived in the everyday—with generosity, with fruitfulness, and always, always rooted in love.

In the Hearts of Family

She is survived by her daughters, Laurie (David) and Jackie (Chuck); her grandchildren and great-grandchildren; her sister, Jill (Tom); her cousin MaryBeth—who lovingly called her “Auntie Pat”; her brother-in-law, Tom (Anita); her nieces, Kimberly (Al) and Wendy (John); her nephews, James (Jill) and Glen (Emma); and Glen’s children, Harper Grace, Kellen, and Reagan. She was preceded in death by her parents, John and Cathy; her beloved husband, George (2011); and her daughter, Trisha (2018).

Legacy

Pat’s legacy lives on in the strength, love, and resilience she passed down. She taught us how to stand up—for ourselves and for each other—and, as she came to understand that love doesn’t demand endless sacrifice, she increasingly sought relationships built on mutual respect, warmth and affirmation.

Pat Dorony’s impact was elemental. Her care met others at precise moments—through prayer, presence, and conviction—and set things in motion. Like atoms colliding to form something larger, her actions sparked change, connection, and clarity. That energy persists, carried forward by those she touched. Her influence continues to unfold.

Funeral services are private. Burial at Western Reserve National Cemetery. Donations in Pat’s name may be made to any organization that supports those in need.