Patricia also known as Pat or Patti (mom to us) Green left this earth at age 76 on January 5, 2022 unexpectedly, leaving those left behind shocked and stunned at her departure. Knowing her, however, we should not be surprised as she took great joy in keeping things short and sweet. Mom was in good form just hours before her passing joining a yoga session and carrying on a lively phone conversation with a sister.
Pat was born in Great Falls, Montana on March 17, 1945 to Charles C. Reinhart and Jessie D. Brooks Reinhart. She was named after an aunt, not St. Patrick’s Day, but she embraced all things Irish wholeheartedly, taking great pleasure in her recently discovered Irish ancestry and all that it entailed. She once said she couldn’t think of a more Irish name than Patricia Kay Green.
Pat was the 4th of 8 close-knit siblings, growing up blessed with strong family ties in a time of limited family financial resources. Because of that she developed a fondness for simple pleasures such as playing family card games that provided her with hours of entertainment at no expense and a sense of victory as she was more often than not the champ. She thrilled beating her siblings at Hearts, Pinochle and Pitch or teaching the next generation how to play 31, a tradition handed down from her father.
Her formative years were spent in Conrad, MT and Great Falls, WY. Early on she developed a devotion to caring for others, becoming constant helper to her mother caring for a younger sister, Jackie Sue, who was born with Down Syndrome. Pat twirled the baton as a majorette in school and babysat for spending money. Following graduation from Greybull High she attended college at Greybull Community College and Powell College (Wyoming).
Pat married Larry Moore and traveled around the world, living on Air Force bases in Japan and England as well as throughout the US. That marriage produced two loving daughters, Cynthia (Cindy) and Leslie. Patti adored her daughters, and they her. A divorce, subsequent marriage and another divorce occurred before she found the love of her life, the man that made her laugh and shine, Thayne R. Green. They wed in 1986 and lived a life of dedication and tenderness to each other and many meals out (as Pat didn’t even pretend to like cooking), and Thayne loved dining out with his adoring wife. However mom did love cooking traditional holiday meals and having the family surrounding her, enjoying their company.
She especially loved her grandchildren, and great-grandchildren (to her, there really was no such thing as a “step” grandchild). As a doting grandmother to two special grandchildren, Sarah and Will, she loved vacationing with them. To her, it was “more fun being a grandma, than to raise kids”.
Pat became a cracker-jack real estate agent, receiving many top real estate awards, while raising her two daughters. She developed a clientele that valued and trusted her, many returning time and again to buy and sell their homes during her 40 year career. She served multiple generations with their home selling and buying needs, as many became close friends and was honored to be trusted so much. It was the friendships she made during her career that meant the most to her. Even after retirement, she maintained those friendships and connections through texting, calling and the ever present lunches out and in so many other ways – nurturing, tending and occasionally pruning the wide circle of friends and family that were lucky to be part of the huge garden of her life. She made friends quickly and kept them fast.
Pat was born a care taker and she lovingly devoted incalculable hours time caring for many, starting at a young age with her sister Jackie, continuing on through devoted service to her husband Thayne and brother Chuck as they declined in later years. If not caring for other humans she often beamed as she tended a pair of small dogs (noting, that her pups would be lonely without her at home so they had to come in pairs to have a playmate).
Nearly all who knew mom would describe her as having an Irish heart of gold, but she was not a push over. Her beliefs were strong and boundaries clear. She was a woman that believed there is a right and a wrong and was once overheard saying, “the grey area is for the birds and wishy-washy people”. Pat was a steadfast champion and advocate of her friends and family. She had no room for pity parties, yet she defined the concept of fiercely supporting those she loved and believed in. If Pat was in your corner, you needed no other. Leading by example she provided her daughters and others with a road map of encouragement, self-reliance, bravery and a knowledge that dreams are attainable if only you doggedly reach for them.
Travel and laughter were two of her hobbies (along with Facebook, solitaire and word games on her iPad). She loved the new and the old traveled paths. She followed her daughter and son-in-law around to as many SaddleStrings concerts as she could, and so enjoyed their music. A favorite destination was Ireland, but England (a trip was planned for May 2022 to see her dear friends, Carol and John Bloomfield), Scotland and the vast US were all places she enjoyed and many were blessed to share in her adventures knowing for certain that there would be laughter and merriment along the way.
Pat most recently attended the Clearfield Community Church in Clearfield Utah and joined a Bible study group there. She was a long-time member of the Utah Association of REALTORS, enjoyed participating in dinners and events with her friends in the Red Hat Society, among many other activities and organizations that she supported.
She was preceded in death by her soul mate and husband Thayne, her parents, two sisters Joan E. Reinhart McDonald and Jacqueline S. Reinhart and a brother Charles B. Reinhart and Thayne’s son Douglas Green. She is survived by daughters Cynthia (Cindy) Argyle (Kurt) of Hooper, UT and Leslie (William) Walsh of Grapevine TX, stepchildren Robert (Anne) Green, St. George, UT, Mark (Holly) Green, Evanston, WY, Brad Green, Missoula, MT. Other survivors include siblings Peggy Patterson of Hoodsport, WA, William (Louise) Reinhart of Rock Springs, WY, Cheryl (Arthur) Rivard of Danville, KY and Carolyn (John) Killefer of Brookings, SD, many wonderful nieces and nephews, grandchildren, great-grandchildren (remember there’s no such thing as “step”), a countless number of friends, too many to mention all of whom are very special to her. We all join in grieving and celebrating her life well lived.
