Patricia “Pat” Jane Hall Wright, of Ames, IA, beloved mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend; passed away on Tuesday, November 16, 2021, less than a month from her 96th birthday. Pat died at home in the Health Center at Northcrest Community, surrounded by her daughters.
Visitation will be held from 5:00 to 7:00 P.M. Friday, November 19, 2021, at Northminster Presbyterian Church, 1416 20th Street, Ames, and continue one hour before services on Saturday. Funeral services for Pat will be held at 11:00 A.M. Saturday, November 20, 2021, at Northminster Presbyterian Church with Rev. James DuBois officiating. Burial will follow in Buckingham Cemetery at Traer, IA. Masks are highly recommended at the visitation and the funeral.
Pat was born on December 14, 1925, in Cedar Rapids, IA, to Evelyn Sprague Glasgow Hall and Walter Channing Hall. The eldest of four children, Pat spent her early childhood living in Columbus Junction, IA, before moving to Iowa City, IA, at the age of nine and later to Tipton, IA. She graduated from Tipton High School in 1943. Following graduation, she and several friends volunteered for recruitment at the Rock Island Arsenal, commuting for one year to work there as a typist. Pat received her Bachelor’s Degree, majoring in Spanish, from Cornell College in Mt. Vernon, IA, in 1948, after attending Cottey College in Nevada, MO, during her freshman year.
Pat’s professional years were spent working for ten years at the Board of Education in Cedar Rapids as secretary to the superintendent. Following a move to Ames, Pat worked as a secretary at Iowa State University in the departments of agriculture, mechanical engineering, and chemistry. Later she also worked as a secretary at Beloit in Ames and volunteered her secretarial skills at Story County Red Cross and FISH of Ames. While living in Cedar Rapids, Pat attended dances at the 20/40 Club. Several years later, she met a man named Harold on Main Street in Ames and recognized him from those dances, not knowing they each had moved to Ames.
Pat married Harold Malcolm Wright on May 23, 1959, at the United Presbyterian Church in Tipton, IA. They were blessed by the birth of their two daughters, Carolyn and Linda. Pat described raising their daughters as “pure joy!” Pat and Harold made their home at 1718 Clark Ave. in Ames for 42 years before moving to Northcrest in 2002.
Pat was a charter member of Northminster Presbyterian Church in Ames, where she served as a deacon and sang in the church choir. Her devotion to her faith remained strong throughout her life. Pat enjoyed knitting, baking, typing, reading, counted cross-stitch, word search puzzles, cards and letters, helping others, and time spent with family and friends. In her earlier years, she was active in PEO, most recently Chapter KR in Ames. Music was always an important part of Pat’s life. She played the flute in high school, sang Handel’s “Messiah” in college and later with the Ames Choral Society, and enjoyed any activities at Northcrest involving Big Band music.
Pat will be remembered for her kind, gentle, and generous spirit; her never-fail pie crust; her love of Scrabble; her devotion to watching Lawrence Welk on TV; her 60 years of attending summer municipal band concerts in Ames Bandshell Park; and her modeling grace and resilience in facing numerous health challenges over the years.
Pat is survived by daughter, Carolyn Sue Wright Kern (Ben Martin Kern) of Norwalk, IA; daughter, Linda Wright Simmons (David R.W. Simmons) of Winter Park, FL; grandchildren, Adam Thomas Kern of Colorado Springs, CO, Michael Austin Kern (Lauren Elizabeth Sebek Kern) of Grimes, IA, Jennie (Jen) Rebekah Kern of Glen Ellyn, IL, Mary Ella Wright Simmons of Washington DC, and Eric Stewart Simmons of Washington DC; brother, Channing Glasgow Hall of Guttenberg, IA, and many nieces, nephews, and friends.
Pat was preceded in death by her husband, Harold; her brother, James Sprague Hall; her sister, Constance Hall Mohr, and her parents, Evelyn and Channing.
Pat’s family wishes to express their gratitude to the Health Center staff at Northcrest Community, Jennifer Killion, M.D., Erica Henricks, ARNP, and Art Staniforth, DDS, for their many years of exemplary care, and to Pat’s team at St. Croix Hospice for their compassion and comfort in recent months.