Joyce E. Patton

Joyce E. “Chic” Patton, a longtime Silverdale resident, passed away on Sunday, August 14, 2022, in Helena, Montana. She was 79.

She was the beloved wife of the late Fred A. Patton for 57 years until his death in 2018.

Born in Sellersville, Joyce was the daughter of the late Harry G. and Dorothy M. (Steeley) Rosenberger.

Joyce attended a one-room schoolhouse until moving on to Pennridge High School, where she played field hockey, marched in the band, and met the love of her life, Fred Patton, before graduating in 1960.

Marrying soon after graduation, Fred and Joyce first lived in New York state for a short time before returning to Pennsylvania to live in Hilltown. In the early 1980s the Pattons moved to Joyce’s childhood home in Silverdale.

Once the children were older, Joyce returned to school and received her RN license. She spent many years working at Doylestown Hospital and later St. Mary’s Manor, Lansdale. She loved to care for others, and nursing brought her great personal satisfaction as she saw to others’ well-being.

A long-time active member of St. Andrew’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, Perkasie, Joyce had served on Church Council, delivered altar flowers, served on the Altar Guild, taught Sunday school, sung in the Funeral Choir and Early Morning Choir, and delivered Saintly Suppers meals. She had also volunteered for many years with the church-sponsored Appalachian Service Project (ASP), assisting with new home construction or renovations.

Joyce was a lifetime member of the Ladies Auxiliary of the Sellersville Fire Department, where she volunteered at the yearly SFD carnivals, helped with Easter flowers sales, and worked all SFD ham dinners and breakfasts.

With Fred, she also delivered Meals on Wheels to shut-ins and volunteered at the Pennridge FISH Food Pantry.

Always civic-minded, Joyce was a member of the Silverdale Borough Council for more than 10 years, helping the town retain its rural qualities while still growing and developing a course for the future.

An avid gardener and baker, Joyce had also delighted in far-flung travels with Fred on scuba-diving vacations. Always enjoying summer picnics with friends, Perkasie Fire Department family gatherings at the holidays, or feeding her koi fish and bird feeder birds, Joyce found her greatest pleasure was in time spent with her family. She loved marathon family card games, holding and playing with the grandchildren and great-grandchildren, knitting items for the grandbabies, and altering prom dresses for her granddaughters.

Joyce is survived by her three sons: David A. Patton and his wife, Karen, of Sellersville, William F. Patton, of Avon, Indiana, Timothy A. Patton, of Bernville; her daughter, Susan G. Taylor, and her husband, Paul, of Helena, Montana; 11 grandchildren: Chelsea, Carol Anne, Erin, Jacob, Sadie, Laura, Samantha, Jessica, Patrick, Megan, and Thomas; and five great-grandchildren: Olivia, Peyton, Skyla, Scarlett, and Nolan.

In addition to her husband and parents, she was preceded in death by two brothers, Harry Rosenberger and James Rosenberger, and a sister, Mary Jane Hartley.

Her memorial service will be held at 10 a.m., Wednesday, September 14, in St. Andrew’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, 20 Dill Avenue, Perkasie, PA 18944.

Interment will follow in St. Andrew’s Union Cemetery, Perkasie.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Mrs. Patton’s name may be made to St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church at the address above or to Pennridge Meals on Wheels, 699 Cedar Lane, Perkasie, PA 18944, or to Pennridge FISH, P.O. Box 9, Perkasie, PA 18944 or to the Sellersville Fire Department Ladies Auxiliary, 2 North Main Street, P.O. Box 315, Sellersville, PA 18960.