Menu
Search
In honor of our beloved Momma, Grandma, Sister, Aunt, Cousin and dear friend, Patricia Ann “Pat” Mathis. You are gone, but never once forgotten and always… constantly missed.
She was dubbed “Chicken Lady” by youngsters who knew of her penchant for chicken-themed knickknacks.
But friends say her nickname also fit because of the way she took children under her wing in her at-home day-care business.
Besides feeding and tucking in little ones, “she wagged them around, took them everywhere,” said client and friend Dana Leahy of Arlington.
Mrs. Mathis, 58, died at an Arlington hospital Sunday after a four-month battle with brain cancer, relatives said.
Patricia “Pat” Mathis was born June 8, 1946, in Waukegan, Ill., and married George Mathis on Aug. 1, 1970, in Libertyville, Ill.
George fell in love with her just because of her attitude. She was pretty easygoing. The couple moved to Arlington in 1980. They had three sons Billy, Bobby and Mike.
She loved crafts and would make Christmas gifts, and she had at least 300 chickens and collected maybe that many angels.
During the several years that Pat offered day care, there was never a lack of children in the house. She was always happy and laughing. Not a huge disciplinarian; she never put children in “timeout,” but they minded her. She was a Cub Scout den mother and she always had enough attention and love for everybody.
We only knew about her brain cancer for 4 months before she passed away May 29, 2005.