Patricia Reisinger Hale

Pat Hale was born in Dayton, Ohio on May 21, 1953. She was the fourth child, of seven, for her parents, Mary Lou and Paul Reisinger. Her siblings are Mike (Jane), Tom (Margo), Terri (Michael) Fusco, Marylee (Patrick) Dunphy, Tim (Jeanne), and Susie (Phil) Goedde. Patricia also has many cousins, nieces and nephews. She attended St. Albert the Great elementary school and Archbishop Alter high school, where she made many special friends that she has kept for a lifetime. While at Alter, she was a Lancerette and always enjoyed music and dancing. After high school, she attended college and especially treasured her year studying in Rome, Italy, where she was able to visit many fascinating cities and countries. Her favorite color was green and she loved wearing hats of all kinds. Patricia always loved a party, especially if it involved dancing, and spending time with friends and family.

Pat lived for a time in Colorado and, after returning to Dayton, met Chris Hale on July 23, 1982 when she asked him for a dance at a party. He was immediately smitten. They married on October 26, 1985. After the couple moved to Atlanta, Pat worked at Emory University Hospital and obtained a Master’s of Public Health degree at Emory University. This began a significant career in public health education and advocacy in the area of smoking prevention policy and prevention education. Pat was instrumental in the movement to remove second-hand smoke from public settings in Texas, Illinois, Oregon, and Ohio; and in educating teenagers about the dangers of smoking. It also was during this period that Pat arranged for and managed the placement of a group of European and Japanese high school students in the year-abroad program sponsored by the EF Foundation for Foreign Study. This reflected Pat’s lifelong love of travel, fascination with cultures across the world, and belief that an immersed understanding of others will lead to a better world. She maintained continual contact and interaction with the students during their year in the United States. The friendships formed with these students during this time lasted throughout Pat’s life, and she often visited with them and their families when on overseas trips.

Pat and Chris returned to Dayton in 2002. Pat left public health to devote herself to helping other family members care for her mother, then in the mid-stage of Alzheimer’s disease. It was during this time that Pat began to teach herself drawing and painting. Over the coming years she produced many whimsical works of art, focusing on scenes of innocence and childlike fascination with the wonders of life.

Each of these paintings served as a metaphor for treasured facets of Pat’s life: Deep faith, the transcendence resulting from valuing all creatures and all cultures, the importance of both knowledge and wisdom, and calmness in the face of uncertainty and adversity. These drawings and paintings will be a treasured legacy for those who loved her.

Pat led a full, happy life and left a legacy of friendships all over the world. She spent her junior year of college in Rome, Italy studying in the year abroad program affiliated with Loyola University. Taking full advantage of that opportunity, she visited 18 countries by the time she returned home. After college she traveled extensively as part of an early job as a travel guide. After she married, she and her husband regularly traveled to national parks throughout the western United States and to other locations along the west coast. She presented professional papers in Alaska, France, Sweden, and Argentina as part of her public heath work. Pat and Chris vacationed multiple times in Europe, Canada and Japan. Pat’s love of travel was intimately bound up with her fascination with, and openness to, people of all cultures and ethnicities. She truly loved all people, everywhere. Because of this fascination, Pat leaves a legacy of friendships across the United States and all over the world.

Pat’s love of travel reflected a deep curiosity and appreciation for cultures, people, and environments. She loved to immerse herself in the cultural diversity and history that arises from international travel. These trips always started with tours to familiarize herself with the environment of the location, followed by close interaction with that environment to understand and its people. She often could be found in long conversations with local residents about their lives: Hopes and disappointments, frustrations and triumphs. These conversations enriched her own life. This intellectual curiosity indicated one of her most enduring qualities: A calm acceptance of everyone, everywhere, as they were. This fascination with, and acceptance of, everyone was a hallmark of Pat’s joy in life and joy of life.

Pat was devoted to life’s most important facets. She always was concerned for the wellbeing of everyone, in her work, friendships, and relationships. Her two most important devotions were to her God and her family. Pat’s faith was unshakable, even in trying times, because she integrated the tenets of her faith with her lived existence. She had an equally unshakable faith in family, and no differences or disagreements could challenge that. Pat possessed a keen sense of what is important in life.

Pat was diagnosed with vascular dementia in February, 2016. This early onset dementia progressed to Alzheimer’s Disease over the next 7 years, and she died on May 29, 2023. Pat received her diagnosis calmly, with a level of acceptance that is in keeping with a person of both deep faith and a firm grounding in this physical world. As her dementia progressed, she met each challenge with the calmness that characterized her nature and a dignity that impressed all around her. The end of her life in this world was peaceful, surrounded by family. Her passing leaves a deep void in the hearts of all who knew her, but the memory of her life and the warmth of her spirit will continue to sustain us forever.

Memorial Mass 10:30 a.m. Saturday, June 24, 2023 at Queen of Apostles Catholic Church at Bergamo, 4435 E. Patterson Road, Beavercreek, Ohio 45430. The Memorial Mass will be preceded by an informal period of visitation with family and friends from 9:30 – 10:30. Father Tom Schroder celebrating. Private Burial at Calvary Cemetery, Dayton, Ohio.

Memorial Contributions may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association at alz.org Condolences may be made in Pat’s name to www.tobiasfuneralhome.com