Patricia Ann Simon (Monaghan) (1944 – 2023)

Our beautiful mother, Patricia Ann Simon (Monaghan), passed away peacefully at home with family by her side on September 10, 2023. She was 79.  Patricia was born on July 20, 1944, in Indianapolis, Indiana, the daughter of Edward Francis Monaghan and Genevieve Helena Monaghan (Rocap). She was raised in Miami, Florida.

She was the kindest, most caring person we have ever known and was the most wonderful mom we could have ever hoped for. Ann to her immediate family and Pat to her friends, kindness and caring for others were hallmarks of her life and spirit. She experienced the tragedy of losing her father close to Christmas at the age of nearly 4, and her family was left devastated. With her mother forced to work three jobs to make ends meet, our mom was raised in large part by her grandmother, Maud Rocap, a woman of boundless energy, kindness, and goodness. In the years after her father’s death and her mother’s remarriage, our mom, unfortunately, experienced a turbulent and painful home life at times, but her grandmother steadfastly served as a guiding light of love and support. Despite the hardships, she was blessed with a close-knit extended Irish-American family that was part of her life. Our mom’s character was forged in these years of difficult times, and she turned her experiences of grief, loss, and personal pain into a mission to help others in need.

In high school, she volunteered on weekends at her local VA hospital in Miami, Florida, to help care for sick and injured military veterans, including many wounded earlier during the Korean War. She wanted to become a nurse from an early age, and her volunteer work was later recognized by a veteran’s group, the Veterans of Foreign Wars. The VFW chapter in Miami awarded her a full scholarship to nursing school for her efforts on behalf of veterans. She graduated from nursing school in 1965 and became a psychiatric nurse at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami.

While at Jackson Memorial, she attracted the attention of a young psychiatric resident physician, Dr. Robert Simon, and they were later married. They had three sons. She devoted herself to being the best wife, mother, and homemaker she could be, and she also found time to be a Cub Scout Den Mother and a volunteer at the Children’s Inn of the National Institutes of Health (a non-profit offering free lodging and support for pediatric patients and their families undergoing treatment at NIH). She also drove us kids to countless hours of sports practices and activities. She was a great cook and baker loved to travel, and always had a good Irish twinkle in her eye, ready to laugh and smile.  She was a Floridian at heart who loved the state, as well as the Bahamas, where her sister Kathy resides. She also loved Wyoming and the American West. Her presence would light up a room, and she would always try to make people feel good about themselves. She genuinely enjoyed talking to people simply to connect, and she enjoyed many friendships over the years. She always remembered where she came from and was grateful for the many blessings in her life. The family was everything to her.

Patricia is survived by her three sons, Robert of Oakland, California; Patrick (Susan) of Brandon, Florida; Brett (Karie) of Front Royal, Virginia; her five grandsons, Justin, Nicholas, Jasper, Alastair, and Bruno; her dear sister, Kathy Russell, of Nassau, Bahamas; her nieces Deborah (Jason) of Nassau, Bahamas and Donna (Duncan) of Georgia; and cousins Frank and Lucy of Florida and New York. She is preceded in death by her loving husband, Dr. Robert I. Simon.

The family will receive friends on Saturday, September 23, 2023, at 11:00 a.m. at Our Lady of Mercy Church, 9200 Kentsdale Drive, Potomac, Maryland, for a short viewing, with the funeral immediately following at 11:30 a.m. A lunch will be offered after the funeral service at the church. The interment will be private.  In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association.