EDMONDS, Patricia Hope
Retired Secretary of the Academy at Phillips Academy in Andover, has died, aged 92. Born in Philadelphia,
PA, in 1931, to Edwin Irving Hope and Helen Ahrnke Hope, she grew up in Wellesley, MA and attended local schools. As a young girl, she began long involvement with Fleur de Lis Camp in New Hampshire, eventually serving as a counselor and rifle team coach.
She excelled academically at Wellesley High School and then Mount Holyoke College, graduating A.B. in English Literature in 1953. She received her A.M.T. from Radcliffe and embarked upon her English teaching career at Natick High School in 1954. Summers, she led student groups with the Experiment in International Living to England, Mexico and Italy.
In 1959, she met and married
George Howard Edmonds, also an English teacher and in 1961, they moved to Phillips Academy, Andover, where he joined the English Department with housemaster and coaching duties. Their first son was born that year on George’s 30th birthday. A second son arrived in 1964.
Pat became a very active faculty wife and Andover resident, raising her sons and taking leadership roles in the Academy’s Ladies Benevolent Society, the Andover Garden Club and League of Women Voters.
In 1970, she again taught English, this time at Abbot Academy. A 1971-72 sabbatical to England and the continent was a memorable year for her and the family. Upon return, then-Phillips Academy Headmaster Ted Sizer, hired her to do development and fundraising work, in addition to being one of the first house counselors for girls upon co-education. Thus, began a 20 plus-year career that raised millions of dollars for Phillips Academy and its different initiatives, among them, Bicentennial campaign, Addison Gallery, Math/Science program for minority students and creation and oversight of the Andover Development Board. Ultimately, she was appointed Secretary of the Academy, leading the entire spectrum of development work for the school but never losing sight of her roots as a teacher, lending her infectious and tireless optimism to educating colleagues and donors about the goals, values and accomplishments of Phillips Academy.
Pat and her husband both retired in 1995 and embarked on two decades of travel and intellectual pursuits. She was especially devoted to Mount Holyoke and was an active board member for the Andover Memorial Hall Library and Family Services of the Merrimack Valley. They eventually moved to the Edgewood community in North Andover. George predeceased her in 2022. Pat kept his memory alive with family and the strong group of friends they had developed at Edgewood and throughout the world in their 62-year marriage. She was survived by sons, Tom (Ann) and Geoff (Colleen); and grandsons, Brian, Alexander and Timothy; and predeceased by granddaughter, Meghan.
Visiting Hours: A Memorial Service will be conducted on May 11, 2024, at 11:00 a.m., at the North Parish of North Andover Unitarian Universalist Church, where Pat and George were devoted members for almost 60 years. Contributions in her name can be made to Family Services of the Merrimack Valley, 430 N. Canal St., Lawrence, MA 01840 or at fsmv.org. For online condolences, please visit www. contefuneralhomes.com