Service will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22, at her home, on her favorite place, the front porch; arrangements are with Holt Memorial Chapel.
Mary Kathryn Watts Patrick, age 68, of Harrison, passed away from this life on Thursday, Oct. 15 (2020) at Washington Regional Medical Center in Fayetteville. She was born at home, in Cozahome, on July 3, 1952, to Elmer Newton Watts and Osta Mae Curtis Watts.
Mary Kathryn went to work straight out of high school for NWAEDD, then she transitioned to the Area Agency on Aging when it became its own entity in 1979. She served in many capacities for the Agency, later becoming the deputy director. She was also named a Woman of Distinction in 2014. She retired in June 2014, after 40 years at the Agency, and in her own words “retirement was wonderful.”
Mary Kathryn was loved by everyone who knew her. She was kind, loving, compassionate, and had laugh that was so contagious. After retiring, she enjoyed several day trips to Branson, Missouri, and lunch with her friends. Her real pride and joy was coming to Piercetown on a regular basis to see me, her daughter, and my puppies, and also spending time at home with her all-time favorite, Toby. Although she and Dad did some traveling after retirement, her favorite place to be was on the front porch, drinking coffee, and watching the sunset with Dad and Toby. We will miss her incredible cooking skills, although we all agreed that she could never make a homemade biscuit that you couldn’t throw across the room and crack the wall, so Dad was deemed the homemade biscuit maker.
She loved taking care of others, and never wanted any credit. I just learned recently that years ago she had an employee that went through a divorce and was suddenly a single mother of three kids with one income. My little momma gave her money to buy presents for her kids that year for Christmas. That is the kind of person she was.
We will miss her regular phone calls that always began with “whatcha doing?”. We used to tease her about that often. Our hearts are broken and empty, but we know she is with Jesus in Heaven and that is exactly where she always wanted to be. Mary Kathryn loved her family dearly, she had a special bond with her brother, Dan, and her nephew Ricky Watts.
Survivors include her husband of 34 years, Ronald Dean Patrick, of the home; her beloved daughter, Casey Patrick; siblings, Rex Watts and wife MaryAnn; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Mary Kathryn was preceded in death by her parents; her siblings, John E. Watts, Mack Allen Watts, Kenneth Watts, Dan Watts; and nephew, Mark Watts.
Service will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22, at her home, on her favorite place, the front porch. The address will be 3245 Savannah Drive in Harrison. The celebration will all be outdoors, with seating available. Masks will be required. We are completely fine if people would like to just drive around the circle drive and sign the guest book. We have pictures, videos, and the most beautiful flower arrangement, and in true momma fashion, individually wrapped cookies and coffee for all the guests. We hope this will allow more people to come due to the open outdoor setting and a much safer environment for everyone.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Ozark Humane Society, P.O. Box 542, Harrison, AR 72602.
Condolences may be left online at www.holtchapel.com .
