Patricia Anne Towle

Patricia Ann Towle, a long-time Toledo resident and well-known caterer in Northwest Ohio, died August 16 at Lutheran Village at Wolf Creek in Holland, Ohio. She was 88. Ms. Towle, a devoted mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, aunt and friend, was preceded in death by her eldest son, John A. Towle Jr., beloved father and mother, Orville and Dorothy Mathews, adored brother, Warren E. Mathews, and dearest companion and friend Wilbur ‘Bill’ Roach. All were from Toledo. She is survived by her sisters, Emma Jean Rush, formerly of Toledo but now of Fenton, MI, Mary Alice Benore, of Toledo, and sons Patrick A. (Terri) Towle, of Leesburg, VA, Michael D. Towle Sr., of Washington DC, and George Towle, of Toledo. She is also survived by five grandchildren, three great grandchildren, two nephews, and one niece. In her life, she loved giving hugs and her time to those close to her, saying ‘I love you’ to her sons, watching the grandchildren she loved so much grow, seeing the happiness on the faces of the thousands she cooked for, sitting and talking with her friends, offering a helping hand to those in need, spending time with her brother and sisters, riding around town in her father’s car, sewing with her mother, out running the boys on the track team in high school, planting a garden that would often become a neighborhood showcase no matter where she lived, worshipping God on Sunday mornings with the members of her church, and playing with her sweet dog, Dusty. Ms. Towle, who was employed as an accountant at Gerity-Schultz Corp. (the former Toledo Die-Cast company) in the 1970s, was a 1947 graduate of Toledo’s Thomas A. DeVilbiss High School and a 1991 graduate of the University of Toledo, where she studied culinary arts, catering, and small business marketing, on her way to earning her degree in business at the age of 62. For years, she catered wedding receptions, social events, and business and political functions in the Toledo area, including regular luncheons for business leaders for the Rotary Club of Toledo. In retirement, she led a group of fellow residents at Luther Crest Apartments on North Holland Sylvania Road in putting on an annual luncheon to honor Toledo’s firefighters and paramedics. Ms. Towle, who friends called Patti or Pat, was active in numerous social and civic organizations, including the West Toledo Garden Club and – well known among friends in the community for her cakes, cupcakes and cookies - was a constant and very popular choice for room mother and team mom when her four sons attended the former McKinley Elementary School in Toledo in the 1960s and 70s. She also volunteered at the Toledo Council of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, working in its downtown Toledo thrift shop. Politically active, Ms. Towle belonged to several Toledo-area Republican groups, and worked on campaigns for GOP presidential nominees, including that of President Richard M. Nixon, whose campaign staff invited her to his inauguration. Though a lifelong devoted Republican, one of her most cherished memories was a meeting with the late President John F. Kennedy while she lived on Oahu, Hawaii. She exchanged pleasantries and shook hands with President Kennedy, a Democrat, when he greeted well-wishers on a visit to the island in June of 1963. A member of several area churches, including the former North Cove Boulevard Church of God, Ms. Towle was most recently a member of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church on Elmer Drive in Toledo. Family will receive friends on Saturday August 19, 2017 from 10:00 AM-11:00 AM at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church 5845 Elmer Dr Toledo, OH 43615 where a memorial service will be held at 11:00 AM. Interment will follow at Historic Woodlawn Cemetery. The family asks that any tributes be sent to the Epilepsy Foundation, a non-profit national foundation dedicated to the welfare of people with epilepsy and seizure disorders.