Patricia Aura Gar ver Wagenhals

August 12, 1934 - December 13, 2022

Patricia Aura Gar ver Wagenhals, of Carmel, California, and formerly of both Boulder and Monterey,califo rnia, died peacefully in her sleep at home on December 13, 2022. She was born to Lorine Moore Garver and Paul Miller Garver on August 12,1934 in Dover, Ohio. Pat grew up in Dover, and graduated from Dover High School. She started college at Bowling Green State University and transferred to the University of Wisconsin-madison, where she graduated with a major in English literature and belonged to the Delta Gamma sorority. She remained a joyful and enthusiastic reader throughout her life.

After college, Pat taught English at Strasburg High School in Ohio. She also continued to help her father with their shared passion for advertising their family store, the Garver Brothers Store in Strasburg (1866-1970), known at the time as the "World's Largest Country Store." On April 24, 1959, Pat married Walter Lincoln Wagenhals, who was then a Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps. They moved to Boulder, Colorado, where Walter attended law school and later practiced law and where they created a home for nearly 40 years.

In 1998, after decades of vacationing in

Carmel, Pat and Walter moved to Monterey, where they took great joy in living near family and the Pacific ocean and beautiful beaches. They were also active in the Monterey Democratic Party.

Pat moved to an assisted living facility in Carmel when Walter died in September 2019. She is survived by her beloved daughter Ann Wagenhals and son-in-law Peter Chen, of Palo Alto, as well as by her three cherished grandchildren, Andrew Chen, a Naval aviator, of Virginia Beach, Grace Chen, a resident physician in San Francisco, and Eleanor ("Ellie") Chen, an entrepreneur and CEO in Los Angeles. Nothing delighted Pat more than being surrounded by her family, and she was blessed to have them all at her bedside, either in person, or virtually (technology never ceased to amaze her) as she passed. She took special pride in knowing that a doctor at her bedside was her very own granddaughter, Grace. She is also survived by her adored brother, Paul Garver of Cincinnati.

Pat was a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. Shortly before she died, Pat suggested her headstone inscription, "She loved us, and we loved her," which perfectly captured her life's essence. Pat was blessed with a brilliant and inquisitive mind, a warm and loving heart, and a quick wit. Until the end, she had a fabulous memory and was a terrific storyteller. She especially loved reading fiction, and she was also well-read in history and politics; she always followed closely the news of the world. She was a devoted journal writer, and she wrote a novel. She loved walking outdoors in the Rocky Mountains and near the Pacific Ocean, and she always loved dogs, whose antics greatly amused her. She leaves behind countless warm and beautifully colorful hand-knit afghans and many hand-hooked rugs, often with patterns she had designed. For many years, she did the accounting for the Delta Gamma chapter at the University of Colorado. She faced numerous challenges throughout her life, including polio as a young girl, bilateral breast cancer and early onset heart disease, both when she was in her 50s, and poor hearing through much of her adult life. She was a brave and strong woman and proudly fought to live to age 88. She died of heart failure shortly after losing much of her vision.

The family will hold a private remembrance. In lieu of flowers, those wishing to remember

Pat should donate to the ACLU or the Central Coast VNA & Hospice, Monterey.