Patricia Elaine (Patty) Kleyla

It is with great sadness that the Kleyla Family informs you of the death of our sister Patricia Elaine Kleyla. Patty died peacefully at a Hospice Care Center in Palm Coast, Florida. She had lived in a group home in Palm Coast since late 2010 and had recently developed dementia as is often the case with adults who have Down Syndrome. On February 26, Patty was admitted to the hospital with a serious infection which developed into sepsis from which she couldn’t recover. On March 1, she was transferred to the Hospice Care Center and she passed into eternal life early March 2. Patty was 57 years old. Patty was born in Miami on June 18, 1960 and was the ninth child of the Kleyla family to be followed by two boys for a total of eleven children (7 boys and 4 girls). She thrived in this large family and brought great joy to all she met. Our parents were born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio where they were married on July 14, 1945. After the births of the two oldest girls, they moved to Miami where the rest of the children were born. Our home was in South Miami, just down the street from the Church of the Epiphany and Epiphany School where we all went through grade school. Our home was small with two bedrooms (one for parents and one for girls) and one large sleeping porch known as “The Pit” (for all the boys). There was only one bathroom but somehow we all survived. There were many other large Catholic families at that time so ours was not totally unusual and we grew up in a loving atmosphere. Patty contributed greatly to that atmosphere as she possessed a mystically transcendent charm and loved everyone she met. We all considered her a treasure as she brought us together with her warm and loving embrace and her inquisitiveness and giddy playfulness. Not many people can say that they were loved by all but that was certainly true of Patty. Patty is now united with our mother Mary Catherine (died 1980), our father Paul Archer (died 1995), our Aunt Sylvia Mae Parrott (died 2008), our brother John Michael (died 1993) and our niece Emily Christine Kleyla (died 1995), daughter of Chris and Diane Kleyla. We are now nine surviving siblings: Kitty, Peggy, Chris, Jeff, Larry, Bill, Barbara, Jim and Tom. Patty is also survived by her Aunt Anna Mae Whaley; her brothers-in-law Phil Phillips, Robert Sclater, and Dennis Middleton; her sisters-in-law Diane Kleyla and Karen Kleyla; her dear friend Sandra Keane; many nieces, nephews, cousins; and all the others her life has greatly touched. We are grateful for the loving care of the women at Mandeville Manor in Palm Coast and her room-mates there who were her good friends. We invite you to post your thoughts on this website so you may share your happy memories of our sister Patty. Please remember to say a prayer in her memory and in memory of your loved ones.