In Memory Of
Patricia Louise Ritter
1943
2021
Patricia Louise Ritter
June 27, 1943 — December 14, 2021
Patricia Louise Ritter of Topeka, Kansas and formerly of Alamogordo, New Mexico, finished her earthly journey in Kansas City, Kansas on December 14, 2021 following complications from surgery.
Pat was born to George Edward Taylor and Eleanor Louise (Olsen) Taylor in Boston, Massachusetts on June 27, 1943. As a result of her father's work on the Manhattan Project and its post-WWII developments, she grew up in China Lake, California, the then-closed city of Los Alamos, New Mexico, and Las Cruces, New Mexico. She graduated from Las Cruces High School and enrolled in New Mexico State University in the same city. Despite being told by a professor that "women lacked the Y chromosome necessary to excel in mathematics," she persevered, obtained her undergraduate degree in mathematics and was employed as one of the few female flight data analysts at White Sands Missile Range. It was there that she met William T. ("Bill") Ritter. After only weeks of dating, they became engaged and were married on December 28, 1968, after Bill returned from service in Vietnam. Their fifty-two year marriage was a shining example of devotion, mutual respect, and love to their family and friends.
After Bill's service with the U.S. Army was completed, he joined the Department of Defense in a civil-service capacity, and Pat and Bill added a son (David) and daughter (Cathy) to the family. Pat was a gifted artist, creator, and baker, and she leaves behind a rich legacy of oil paintings, toll paintings, counted cross-stitch pieces, quilted and crocheted blankets, and recipes that are treasured by her family and friends alike. Her signature recipe was vetebröd (Swedish cardamom bread), which always reminded her of Christmas gatherings with her family as a child. She loved traveling, particularly to visit family on the West Coast, and she was an enthusiastic bird-watcher with an encyclopedic knowledge of the local species, especially her beloved New Mexico hummingbirds.
She was a woman of faith and a member of Grace United Methodist Church in Alamogordo, New Mexico. Even after she and Bill moved to Topeka, Kansas following Bill's retirement, for many years she provided her crocheted blankets to be used in the fund-raising events for the church. Pat was an avid reader who instilled a love of books in both her children, and during her time in Alamogordo, she both volunteered for and was employed by the Alamogordo Public Library.
Above all, Pat devoted her life to those important to her, and her relationships as a wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, niece, and cousin were what she valued most. Her memory is honored by her loving husband, William T. ("Bill") Ritter of Topeka, Kansas; son David Ritter (and wife Heather) of Richardson, Texas; daughter Cathy Ritter of Topeka, Kansas; granddaughter Kaitlyn Ritter of Richardson, Texas; step-sister Denise Visintine of St. Peters, Missouri; and closest cousins Cynthia Vest of Arroyo Grande, California, Bruce Cooley of Yucaipa, California and Robert Cooley of Beaumont, California.
At Pat's request, a small family memorial has taken place, and the Ritter family has been assisted by Penwell-Gable of Topeka, Kansas. In lieu of flowers, donations in Pat's memory may be made to the Community Ministries of Grace United Methodist Church, 1206 Greenwood Lane, Alamogordo, New Mexico 88310.
To leave a special message for Pat's family online, please visit the guestbook below.
Pat was born to George Edward Taylor and Eleanor Louise (Olsen) Taylor in Boston, Massachusetts on June 27, 1943. As a result of her father's work on the Manhattan Project and its post-WWII developments, she grew up in China Lake, California, the then-closed city of Los Alamos, New Mexico, and Las Cruces, New Mexico. She graduated from Las Cruces High School and enrolled in New Mexico State University in the same city. Despite being told by a professor that "women lacked the Y chromosome necessary to excel in mathematics," she persevered, obtained her undergraduate degree in mathematics and was employed as one of the few female flight data analysts at White Sands Missile Range. It was there that she met William T. ("Bill") Ritter. After only weeks of dating, they became engaged and were married on December 28, 1968, after Bill returned from service in Vietnam. Their fifty-two year marriage was a shining example of devotion, mutual respect, and love to their family and friends.
After Bill's service with the U.S. Army was completed, he joined the Department of Defense in a civil-service capacity, and Pat and Bill added a son (David) and daughter (Cathy) to the family. Pat was a gifted artist, creator, and baker, and she leaves behind a rich legacy of oil paintings, toll paintings, counted cross-stitch pieces, quilted and crocheted blankets, and recipes that are treasured by her family and friends alike. Her signature recipe was vetebröd (Swedish cardamom bread), which always reminded her of Christmas gatherings with her family as a child. She loved traveling, particularly to visit family on the West Coast, and she was an enthusiastic bird-watcher with an encyclopedic knowledge of the local species, especially her beloved New Mexico hummingbirds.
She was a woman of faith and a member of Grace United Methodist Church in Alamogordo, New Mexico. Even after she and Bill moved to Topeka, Kansas following Bill's retirement, for many years she provided her crocheted blankets to be used in the fund-raising events for the church. Pat was an avid reader who instilled a love of books in both her children, and during her time in Alamogordo, she both volunteered for and was employed by the Alamogordo Public Library.
Above all, Pat devoted her life to those important to her, and her relationships as a wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, niece, and cousin were what she valued most. Her memory is honored by her loving husband, William T. ("Bill") Ritter of Topeka, Kansas; son David Ritter (and wife Heather) of Richardson, Texas; daughter Cathy Ritter of Topeka, Kansas; granddaughter Kaitlyn Ritter of Richardson, Texas; step-sister Denise Visintine of St. Peters, Missouri; and closest cousins Cynthia Vest of Arroyo Grande, California, Bruce Cooley of Yucaipa, California and Robert Cooley of Beaumont, California.
At Pat's request, a small family memorial has taken place, and the Ritter family has been assisted by Penwell-Gable of Topeka, Kansas. In lieu of flowers, donations in Pat's memory may be made to the Community Ministries of Grace United Methodist Church, 1206 Greenwood Lane, Alamogordo, New Mexico 88310.
To leave a special message for Pat's family online, please visit the guestbook below.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Patricia Louise Ritter, please visit our flower store.
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