Pat was born in Ireland in 1925.
He arrived in the United States thru Ellis Island when he was 17months old.
He grew up in the Hell's Kitchen area of New York City.
Pat left high school at age 17 to serve in the United States Navy.
While he never set foot on land, he served aboard a landing craft bringing service men to Omaha Beach.
He married and raised 5 children.
He served 2 more tours in the Naval Reserves.
He voted every year. He served on jury duty. It was his duty to this great country.
He lost his wife to cancer.
He lost 3 of his children. A daughter who had cerebral palsy. A son who was killed in a robbery attempt on a California Street. A son who died of cancer.
In 1996, he remarried and became a Special Man in the lives of a large family.
In 1997 in a quest to visit Ireland, he applied for a passport and was denied. There was no record he was a US citizen!
Pat became a US citizen and visited the place of his birth-twice.
He welcomed all new members of that large family. He especially enjoyed the youngest members.
He played games and showed no mercy!
He sang as a member of the Uncle Sam Barbershop Chorus.
He continued to work for New York State Department of Motor Vehicle until his cancer slowed him down at the age of 84.
As a muggle, he enjoyed our geocaching adventures with us, but from the car. He always wanted to see what we had found.
In 2013, he received his High School diploma from Rensselaer HS.
He never stopped giving.
He never stopped Smiling.
Pat passed on in April 2014. He was 89 years old.
We called him PopPop.
He was a Special Man.