Pat Smith was a great friend beginning in September 1972 where Bob her husband was Security Director of s branch of their company in San Diego but Pat and I formed a close lifelong friendship. As the secretary-cum-ga Friday back then I got to know her lively family and was invited to their home, sometimes overnight, often during their 4 teenagers' school years. 
    We shared by turn fun and turbulent years with the other execs at work and to me Pat was their calming mainstay.  After the corporation dwindled down and eventually closed and Pat's husband Bob passed, she and I remained close friends and kept in touch. She shared her bulbs with me which enhanced my Ocean Beach garden. Her masterful roses flourished under her touch. 
   I last visited Pat in her home during, I believe, the winter before she passed. Though she  was ailing and in pain she was undaunted and calm, her smile still infectious and her lively brown eyes twinkled.  I attended a warm and lively yet respectful celebration of her life at the lovely home of one of her sons Archie (once called"Tiger" as teen) and his lovely family. He had a successful business. His spacious home (up the street from his mom's where her ashes were placed) was filled with those who knew and loved Pat.
    Any good qualities I may have are surely mostly inspired by Pat whom I had known since I was 35. She remains with me in spirit.

It is almost 20 years since Pat Smith passed and I still remember her fondly. We first met in 1972 when I went to work at Pacific International Group Inc and she was the treasurer and bookkeeper. Terry Fallis, Bob Smith (Pat's husband) and Bill Huggins and Pat were the execs of a tight and friendly group. I was their secretary-cum-girl Friday for many years. After Bob and Terry passed and the company was defunct Pat and I remained close. Her daughters Vicki and Debbie and her sons Butch and Archie (aka Tiger) all grew up to be successful in their careers. Tiger had his own company and lived with his family down the block from Pat. We all lost touch but I visited Pat a few times a year.  Then either VIcki or Tiger (these days I'm not sure who) called to inform me of Pat's passing and invited me to Tiger's home for a memorial gathering.  I met Tiger's lovely wife. Butch wowed me! 
 There was mutual love for Pat and the home was filled with her friends and relatives who came to celebrate her life. 
    My favorite memories of Pat are her masterly cooking at holiday parties, 
   Mostly I remember her love for nature. Her roses were incomparable. She gave me callalily and agapanthus bulbs that produced great blooms for decades in Ocean Beach . After I left in 2016  I've no idea of what happened to the plants after 35 years there. Pat always showed great care, affection and love for pets and  some strays. But most of all, Pat's calm, gentle and patient love for her lively family impressed and inspired me. She was supportive of me at work and a calm yet fearless mainstay. She must have instilled these traits in her kids because they grew out of their teen years into fine adults. I also recall how readily she would travel to Washington State to care for her mom. 
    Pat, though only 11 years older than I, was a role model for me.  Any good qualities I may have are due to her 
nature: her sweet and loving friendship and quiet strength. Her spirit remains with me.

Dear Mom/Grandma Smith,
We miss you!
You will forever be in our hearts.

Visitation

Clairemont Mortuary

Patricia Smith

immediate need

Death has occurred or is near

plan ahead

Pre-plan a funeral or cremation

Plan a Funeral or Cremation Default Desktop

Find Obituaries and Services

Send Flowers

sympathy and etiquette

grief library

celebrations of life

What to Say When Someone Dies

Show Your Support

Sympathy and Grief

obituary

services

memories

Obit Detail

In the care of

share to facebook

share by email

share link

Share Obituary

ideas and resources

Sympathy and Grief Mobile

OBITUARY

Patricia Nell Smith

May 13, 1926 – August 4, 2013

Show your support

Add a Memory

Share Obituary

Get Reminders

Services