Obituary of Patricia W Brown

St. Petersburg – Patricia Brown, a long-time resident of Pinellas County died Tuesday, September 3, 2019, in her home.

Born in 1944 in Hopkinsville, KY, she was the first of three children of James and Jane Warren. She graduated from Georgia State University.  During her time in college she met her husband, Gary Brown, in 1962, whom she ended up having 38 wonderful years of marriage. She was a loving wife and mother to 4 boys:  Gary Jr, Caryl, Andy, and Alan. She was well known for her love of animals and teaching school children all over the county about snakes, dinosaurs, and the many exotic animals she kept as pets.  For many years, Pat was affectionately known as “The Snake Lady” to neighborhood kids and teachers alike for her talks where she would bring snakes, including her 15-foot pet python, for show & tell!

Along with her husband, Pat was very intensely involved in supporting her children’s activities.  Whether serving as marching band uniform chair, hosting a Little League end-of-season party, working as Asst. Den Chief in the Cub Scouts, running patch test fundraisers for the band, or serving beer at “The Dome” as part of a different band fundraiser, she supported her sons’ activities through and through.  The yearly neighborhood children Christmas Concert she organized and for which played guitar was a highlight for the holidays.

Although always a fan of cats, her connection to cats went into overdrive as she and Gary became empty nesters.  She attended with her cats – some pedigree and some adopted strays – countless cat shows, collecting boxes full of ribbons and awards, all while making many “cat lady” friends.  Some of her cats were shown and earned Top 10 World Rankings.  Pat and Gary also sheltered over 500 “Jane and John Doe” cats over the course of many years, nursed them back to health or to sufficient age for adoption.  Five special sheltered cats managed to find their way into her heart and gain a permanent home.

Another of her many passions was her love of local sports teams.  She of course would never miss her sons’ little league games, but she enjoyed all kinds of sports.  She never did sign up for cable, so she’d tune her aerial antenna or radio headset and arrange her days to ensure that she wouldn’t miss the Bucs games and the college teams of her sons, the Gators and the Bulls.  She also loved watching the Olympics and the Lightning, but only the network broadcasts, usually during the playoffs.  She could surely cheer with the best of fans!

Pat was a prolific letter writer to the end – yes, pen to paper and requiring a stamp (or two, if she stuffed a lot of local recent articles inside).  She even maintained a pen-pal relationship with someone in England which started in grade school.  They finally met in England after 20 years of exchanging letters. 

In 2003, as one would expect, Pat was very impacted by her husband’s unexpected death at the age of 62.  Over time, however, she gained confidence and independence, successfully organizing and executing a number of successively more complicated home projects. 

As with anyone, she did have her quirks….. Math was never her forte, and she did struggle “at times” with anything that contained a microchip.  She kept meticulous records (anyone want to know what her electric bill was in 1984?), and she really never caught on to the metric system (even with 3 of her sons graduating with science or engineering degrees).  On the flip side, thousands of people over the years have enjoyed eating her cakes and other desserts, and for not having any Italian heritage, she made the best lasagna anywhere!

Pat was a wonder wife, mother, and friend to many.  In spite of her deteriorating health condition, she lived life to the fullest – riding a hover board, attending grandchildren’s special events across the country, and moving faster than her homecare assistants.  Her family will miss her dearly, but takes comfort in knowing she is now happily reunited with the love of her life, Gary, in a far better place.

She is survived by her 4 sons, 7 grandchildren, her brother Ben Warren, and her cherished feline children Orion, Yeai Yeai Tsai, Mi Celito, and Stephan.

Visitation will begin at 10:00am followed by services at 11:00am on Saturday, September 7, 2019, at Holy Cross Catholic Church, where she was an active member for over 40 years. A burial ceremony will follow at Calvary Catholic Cemetery, with a reception back at Holy Cross afterwards.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Gary and Patricia Brown Memorial Scholarship Fund. Checks can be made out and sent to: “The Little Stuff Fund” at 266 Blue Isle Dr, Holland, MI 49424