Patricia Komsa of Williamsburg, Va., passed away on June 12, 2023. She was 74.
Growing up outside Philadelphia, Patricia, known as Patsy, graduated from Merion Mercy Academy in Merion, Pa., and Pierce College in Philadelphia.
After finishing school, Patsy worked in the fashion industry as a buyer for the Blum Store in Philadelphia, frequently traveling to New York City by train.
Patsy met her husband, Paul, in the Philadelphia area, where he attended Villanova University. They were married for 53 years.
For more than 20 years, they lived in Lake Mohawk in Sparta, where they raised two daughters, made many lifetime friends and enjoyed life in the lake community. Their friends enjoyed annual Fourth of July brunches on Patsy and Paul’s lawn while they watched the parade, complete with Patsy’s delicious sticky buns.
She ran an in-home child-care business in Sparta and remained in touch with many of her clients, now friends, until her final days. In her spare time, she taught reading and English as a tutor for Literacy Volunteers of America, and she also sewed for her local Catholic church.
Patsy and Paul moved to Durham, Conn., then to Lake of the Woods in Locust Grove, Va., where they lived for 15 years and where they developed many close friendships and continued to enjoy “lake life.” Patsy very much enjoyed gardening and served as vice president and treasurer of the Lake of the Woods Garden Club for several years.
Diagnosed with dementia in 2015, Patsy persevered through the disease’s challenges and hardships, spending her final year in memory care in Williamsburg with her husband visiting her almost daily and by her side in her final hours.
Patsy was a beloved wife, mother, sister, aunt and friend. She will be remembered for her joy and energy, always ready to lend a helping hand, bring fun and laughter to a party, or brighten someone’s day.
Patsy is preceded in death by her parents, Louise Brophy Lawler and John F. Lawler.
She is survived by her husband, Paul Komsa of Williamsburg; her daughters, Jennifer Komsa Contrucci and her husband Tim of Lanexa, Va., and Stephanie Komsa of Oakland, Calif., and Arlington, Va.; her siblings, John Lawler, Bonnie Keightley, Donald Lawler and Robert Lawler; and her grandchildren, Sophie Contrucci and John Contrucci.
A celebration of life will be held at a later date.