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Obituary of Patricia Irene Ozols
Patricia, the dear wife of John for 54 years, went to the Lord’s House on March 6th, 2023. She was 83 years old when she passed surrounded by her family.
She was born in Southwest Washington, DC, on April 30th, 1939, to Elsie and James De Shields. She was the second youngest of five children.
She spent her early years in Washington, DC, swimming in the Potomac River and working on the farm of her aunt in Maryland.
After graduating from high school, she worked as a secretary in various companies in the DC Metro area.
She met her husband John in 1967 while they were working at Page Communications Co. in Washington, DC. They were married on July 3rd, 1968.
Her daughter, Michelle, was born on March 29th, 1969, in the Columbia Hospital for Women in Washington, DC.
In 1970, Patricia and her family moved to Milano, Italy, where she enjoyed traveling to interesting places in Switzerland, France, Austria, Greece, and Italy.
In 1971, she again moved, but this time to Tehran, Iran, where her husband, John, was employed as a communications engineer. In Iran, she met a lot of long-lasting friends and traveled to places such as the Netherlands, Israel, and Spain. Life was interesting and fun until February 1979, when the Shah of Iran was overthrown, and all foreigners had to leave.
Patricia returned to the United States with her family and settled in Arlington, VA. She worked at various companies in the Arlington area, later joining Arlington Public Schools, from which she retired as an Administrative Assistant. She made many friends through her work that she cherished very much until her final days. Later she moved to Annandale, VA, and started attending Capital Baptist Church, where she made more friends.
The greatest joy in her life was to see her two granddaughters, Riley and Tobi, grow up and turn from bouncing, crying babies into beautiful young ladies. She loved baking and sending cookies and pumpkin bread to them in college. They affectionately referred to her as “Maaw Maaw.”
Patricia is survived by her husband, her daughter, her son-in-law (Andrew Farbstein), and her two granddaughters. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her siblings: Edna “Catherine” Fritter, Walter De Shields, Lois De Shields, and Aurelia (Rita) McDonald.
Patricia enjoyed her life, family, friends, and books. She LOVED to read and devoured books. Reading brought her great joy and enriched her life tremendously. She liked interior decorating and keeping everything in her home tidy, neat, and super clean.
Her home was always impeccably decorated, especially for the holidays at Christmas Time. The wonderful smell of her cookies and pies as you walked in the door, the table overflowing with her specialty dishes (many of them family favorites), and the gifts that she beautifully wrapped will be memories that last a lifetime.
Whatever you called her - Patricia, Pat, Mama, or Maaw Maaw – she will be greatly missed, but she will live on in the hearts of all who knew her. We will always remember her and love her!
In lieu of flowers, gifts in memory of Patricia may be given to the Tunnels to Towers Foundation
Memorial Service and Reception
