Patricia A. Clapp

Patricia A. Clapp, 85, Moses Lake resident and former longtime Ephrata resident, passed away Sunday, Mar. 6, 2011 at Columbia Crest Care Center. Patricia is the first child of Arthur and Byrdie Brownlee. She was born March 13, 1925 in St. Louis, Missouri. She has one brother, Richard “Dick” Brownlee, 5 years younger, currently residing in California. Pat’s childhood was spent surrounded by loving grandparents and cousins to play with. She spent her summers with her grandparents, and there was never a shortage of fun things to do and explore. Pat was a very studious child, loving to read, and her grades proved it. She performed so well; in fact, the school recommended to her mother that she be elevated up a grade skipping 9th grade altogether. She always loved reading. She enjoyed people, and usually the words people use to describe her upon meeting, was “sweet”, “kind”, or “loyal”. The daughter of a long line of seamstresses, she was always outfitted in the latest fashions. She did not lead a sheltered life, as she and her brother went everywhere with their parents, including dancing on Saturday nights. And like most young girls of her generation had a tremendous crush on Frank Sinatra. The year was 1937 and as the depression deepened the family moved to the San Francisco Bay. Pat graduated from high school in Oakland, California in 1942, went one year at San Francisco Junior College, and two years at UCLA and obtained an AA Degree in Art. She worked at the Oakland Tribune (newspaper) from 1942-1943. She worked for Douglas Aircraft in Los Angeles, California from 1944-45. On February 1, 1946 she married John W. “Buster” Clapp, a Chief Petty Officer in the US Navy, in Yuma, Arizona. Upon his honorable discharge from the Navy, they moved to New Mexico, where John’s parents lived. By June 6, 1947, their first child was born followed by 9 more during the next 16 years; Carol, Patty, John, Marianne, Joe, Janice, Clayborn, Leslie, James, and Sammie (6 girls and 4 boys). As a mother, she set many good examples. She was always dressed and groomed to start each new day. She was a soft-spoken person and never raised her voice in anger. It did not seem to phase her to have so many children. She was raised with strong spiritual values and in her later years became a member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. She also had a green thumb and could make the weakest of plants healthy in any type of soil or conditions. She would always say, “Wait, don’t pull it up yet!” “You must learn to be patient.” She never drove until the age of 67, when she took courses and bought herself a car. She always believed that people beyond the age of 80 should not drive, and although she gave up a lot of her freedom, she stuck to her own words. There is so much more that can be said about a wonderful Mother, but there isn’t enough time or paper in the world.

Patricia A. Clapp

March 13, 1925 - March 6, 2011