Patricia Hall Boyce

Patricia Hall Boyce passed away peacefully at her home in Reno, NV, on the morning of September 10, 2020, at the age of 92, having lived and shared a very full life. In her final days, Pat was surrounded by her children and their families, and was lovingly engaged with them.

Patricia Hall was born on February 28, 1928, in Newark, NJ , to parents Robert Kenneth Hall and Bertha Louise Goldberg.  Patricia grew up the youngest of three children in Newburgh, NY, in a family that instilled in her the spirit of volunteerism.

Pat’s husband of 51 years, John Edward Boyce, preceded her in death in 1998, in addition to her parents and two brothers, Robert Kenneth Hall, Jr. and Charles A. Hall. She is survived by her four children: son, John “Jack” Edward Boyce, Jr. (Katherine), Skaneateles, NY; daughter, Lynne Boyce Charlat (Richard), Reno, NV; son, Richard Kaye Boyce (Sue Moy), Las Vegas, NV; and daughter, Carol Boyce Thomas (Fred), Fort Collins, CO; seven grandchildren: Erik John Charlat, Eugene, OR; Elizabeth Patricia Charlat (James Waddell), Reno, NV; Victoria Lee Moy, Las Vegas, NV; Gina Patricia Boyce, Las Vegas, NV; Edward Kaye Boyce, Las Vegas, NV; Keegan Charles Thomas, Walsenburg, CO; and Riley Kaye Thomas, Fort Collins, CO; and one great grandchild: Kailyn Michelle Chamblee, Houston, TX.   Pat is also survived by many nieces and nephews that reside in New York and Georgia.

After graduating from Newburgh Free Academy in 1945, Pat attended Harcum Junior College in Bryn Mawr, PA, with an interest in pursuing a nursing career. While at Harcum, Pat enjoyed participating in theater productions. During the summer of 1946, Pat met the love of her life, Ed, at the Base Exchange at Stewart Field AFB, where she was working for the summer.  On May 10, 1947, the two were married in Newburgh, NY.

In 1948, Ed and Pat traveled across the Atlantic, with their first child, Jack, to post-war Germany, to Ed’s new post at Furstenfeldbruck AFB, in Munich. For Pat, this move truly began what would become a lifelong commitment to helping people from all around the world, welcoming and assisting them however she could. While living at Furstenfeldbruck, in the aftermath of World War II, Pat organized a large volunteer effort to help feed, clothe, and medically treat Holocaust survivors from Dachau Concentration Camp, who were living in displaced persons camps in Munich. Pat was inspired to provide work and a home to one homeless survivor, and a decades-long friendship began between them.

After Germany, Pat’s husband’s careers in the Air Force, United States Agency for International Development, and private industry took them over the next three decades to several states in the US and to various countries in Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.  Their travels bridged times of peace, war, and revolutionary conflict, necessitating evacuations from Saigon, South Vietnam and Isfahan, Iran. They welcomed three additional children, and Pat continued her volunteer efforts wherever their travels took them.  She worked closely with the Catholic Relief Services in Saigon, helping to coordinate field trips and activities for orphaned children, and was an active participant in the Operation Babylift evacuation mission in Saigon, helping on two occasions to transport orphaned South Vietnamese babies to the US for adoption. In recent years, Pat was involved in matters of social justice. 

Traveling the world to faraway lands, under sometimes hardship conditions, Pat was no stranger to life’s challenges, but faced them with courage, strength, and humor.  This included her contracting Polio while the family was stationed at Alexandria Air Force Base in LA in 1954-1956.  Although her health was adversely impacted throughout her life, Pat faced each day with a smile for others, a sense of purpose, and the need to be involved and contribute.

Pat was a woman of faith and a devout Episcopalian, which gave her strength all her life. Having been exposed to a multitude of cultures and religions during her travels, she was a very enlightened, tolerant and accepting person of people of all ethnicities and faiths.

Pat was also a woman of many interests and talents.  She was an avid reader, a lover of music and the arts, choir singer, sports enthusiast, gifted Bridge player, Bingo fan, and a wonderful cook.  She enjoyed hobbies of Chinese brush painting, Tai Chi, and learning about antiques. Pat’s greatest pride was in her family and grandchildren, and spending time with them and good friends was what brought her the greatest joy.  Whether giving back to her community, entertaining the countless friends of the family’s with her fine cooking, enjoying the arts, or white-water rafting in her eighties with her family, Pat’s service to others, zest for life, and capacity for fun endeared her to all who knew her.

Pat leaves a grateful and inspired family her meaningful legacy of social responsibility, love for family and friends, courage, and the importance of laughter. The lyrics of the African-American Spiritual “Peace Like a River” reflect what Pat’s family and friends saw in her, which was peace, faith, hope and love, and her eyes and smile reflected that.

Pat’s children wish to specifically acknowledge and honor their sibling, Lynne Charlat, whose exquisitely loving care of Pat for two decades enabled Pat to continue to live and thrive as independently as possible, fully engaged in life.

Pat’s family also wishes to express its sincere gratitude to the caring and attentive staff of St. Mary’s Hospice, Five Star Premier Residences Assisted Living Facility, and Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Reno, NV.

A Funeral Service and Inurnment of Pat, with her husband, Ed, will be held sometime in 2021 at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Reno, NV.  Pat and her family request donations be made to Faith Like A River Capital Campaign, c/o Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, PO Box 2246, Reno, NV 89505-1815.