Patricia Ann Jordan

Patricia Kerr Jordan, artist, teacher, volunteer, and lover of live music, passed away on November 28, 2025. Born in the Villa Heights neighborhood of Charlotte, Pat moved to Hickory Grove at 14 and soon fell for the boy across the street, Verner. They married just weeks after her high-school graduation. Their first home was a small apartment on Selwyn Avenue, walking distance from Queens College, where Pat earned her B.A. in Art in 1964.

Pat painted murals (including contributing heavily to the Sweitzer Mural), modeled, and taught art at Sedgefield Junior High until the birth of her first daughter, Jill. When their landlord objected to children in the building, Pat and Verner bought land in outer Mecklenburg County on Town & Country Drive. They built a modern house that soon welcomed two more daughters, Shelly and Brandon.

With little money but boundless creativity, Pat transformed that home into a warm, eclectic haven. She painted trompe-l’oeil walls, paneled the kitchen with reclaimed family lumber, crafted décor for her daughters’ rooms, wallpapered, sewed drapes, refinished furniture, and created a gathering place filled with color, music, and laughter that was stylish enough to be featured in the “Charlotte News” (May, 1978).

An early force behind Charlotte Country Day’s “Big Saturday” craft sale, Pat led teams of DIY moms who stitched pincushions, appliquéd skirts, and sewed dolls and oven mitts. A spinoff group, “The Basket Case,” later sold handmade Christmas gifts at the Southern Christmas Show and in Pat’s basement, long before Pinterest or Etsy existed.

Vivacious and endlessly inventive, Pat painted, sewed, decorated, and landscaped. She loved nature, which permeated her art. She dressed in bright colors and threw themed parties. As a member of Carmel County Club, she enjoyed friendships, gatherings, and the social grace she carried so naturally.

Pat continued to substitute-teach art at Charlotte Country Day and Charlotte Catholic, staying close to the world her children inhabited. As her daughters grew, she became a real estate agent, forging meaningful friendships with many of her clients. Her most treasured project remained creating three new human beings… motherhood delighted and challenged her.

Diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in her 40s, Pat voiced a lifelong wish to live at the beach. Verner made it possible by shifting careers so they could move to Wild Dunes on Isle of Palms and buy a sail boat. There Miss Pat (as she was affectionately called), flourished, making friends, enjoying live music, volunteering as a docent at the Gibbes Museum, and returning to painting. She exhibited regularly and joined the Charleston Artist Guild, and she built a business creating custom, hand painted tiles. Their lagoon-side home became the heart of family gatherings; all three daughters married in Charleston, and countless memories were made there.

Eventually, the couple returned to Charlotte to be closer to family and better manage Pat’s progressing illness. Parkinson’s slowly took her mobility, then pieces of her memory and voice, but never her spirit. She fought to stay present in every moment. She met each day with courage, grace, and a spark that endured until the end. Her final years were marked by extraordinary devotion from Verner and the expert care of her nurses.

She is survived by her daughters Jill Michelle Jordan (Joe Montalto), Shelly Jordan Rydell (Shannon), and Brandon Jordan Pham (Kiet); six grandchildren—Olivia and Jack Montalto, Paige and Libby Rydell, Jordan and Reese Pham; her sister Terry Leigh Kerr; and her brother Danny Edward Kerr. She was predeceased by her beloved husband of 65 years, Verner Nicholson Jordan Jr., and by her parents, Junius Bernard Kerr and Hildrey Patton Kerr.

A graveside service will be held Saturday, December 20th at 10am at Sharon Memorial Park, 5716 Monroe Road, Charlotte, NC, near the entrance. A reception will follow at Pat’s daughter’s home off Carmel Road. All are welcome.

Donations in Pat’s memory may be made to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research at michaeljfox.org.