Patricia Maybelle Doolittle

She was independent, adventurous, courageous and opinionated. These are things we like to remember about Patricia Maybelle Doolittle, our beloved mother, much-loved grandma & great-grandma, and dear friend.

Patricia was born at home in Sand Springs, Oklahoma to John and Hazel Willis, on February 25, 1931. She was their second child. Her older brother, Paul, was photographed as a very young child standing on a piano bench. The back of the photograph mentioned a church on Maybelle Avenue in Tulsa - probably the Baptist church her Grandmother Ethel’s husband preached at. We think that’s where the idea for her lovely middle name came from. She rarely used it however, and preferred to be known simply as Pat.

During her childhood the family moved from Oklahoma to California where they settled down in Santa Cruz, a popular seaside town about 75 miles south of San Francisco, on Monterey Bay. Her father worked in the construction industry and her mother got a job working for a dry cleaner. Later they moved to Oakland in the San Francisco Bay Area and owned Cottage Cleaners, a dry cleaning and laundry business that remained a central gathering place for our family for many years. It was originally located in East Oakland and later moved to Hayward.

With her lovely dark hair and spunky personality, Mom caught the eye of our father, Wayland Martin, an accountant employed in Berkeley. They married in 1949; she was only eighteen. Four children and twenty years later, after living in San Pablo, El Cerrito and then El Sobrante (three San Francisco Bay Area towns), they divorced. During her time in El Sobrante her favorite sports were bowling and golfing.

After the divorce Patricia bravely took on the responsibility of full time work. She trained at Heald Business College, then worked for a security firm for a short time, and later worked in the office of a large real estate company for many years. She had a lot of determination and a desire for self-sufficiency. 

She sold her home in the El Sobrante area and bought a nice home in Hayward, California. There, she enjoyed long-distance bicycle riding. She joined a bicycle club where she met her second husband, Bob Doolittle, who worked in the construction industry. He retired a few months before she did and decided to go visit his children in Oregon and Washington - on his bicycle. Patricia sold her Hayward home and was set to retire when he returned. They planned a retirement tandem bicycle trip together in Russia. Unfortunately, after visiting all of his children he was hit by a truck while riding his bicycle on the Oregon coast, going home, so Patricia was tragically widowed.

Since she was retired, without a house, and suddenly single again, Patricia started traveling in an RV. She parked at the Honey Bear Campground RV park near Gold Beach, Oregon, not far from where Bob died, and soon was working there in the campground office and store. That lasted several years. During this time she enjoyed whitewater rafting trips on the Stanislaus and Rogue Rivers.

All during her life she was extremely creative and productive. She produced impressive drawings earlier in life, but spent more time as a creative seamstress making clothes, toys, and amazing dolls for her children and grandchildren. She also crocheted afghans and at one time made a king-sized quilted bedspread. Everything she did was excellent in quality, and her dolls were offered for sale at the Honey Bear Campground store.

After leaving that job she traveled around the United States in her RV for quite a few years, with no fixed abode. Like I mentioned at the beginning of this narrative, she was very independent and adventurous, as well as courageous and fun-loving. These qualities serve as an inspiration and legacy for her children and others who love her.

Patricia eventually settled down in Rockport, Texas, where she made many friends, volunteered her time at Care Regional Medical Center in Aransas Pass, and enjoyed life living in a mobile home park close to the Gulf Coast. She loved to read novels and owned a series of adorable little dogs as companions during her Rockport years. 

As to her passing, our mom died on February 9, 2017, a few days after having a massive stroke. Although she had never had a major stroke before, it isn’t uncommon in our family. Her mother also died after a debilitating stroke, and at the same age, within a month before her 86th birthday.

Patricia is survived by her four children: Susan Catling, Linda Martin, Jon Martin and Kyle Martin. She also has five grandchildren: Joshua Murphy, Simoné Reichel, Naomi Richardson, Cimeron Stewart, and Aaron Martin; plus six great-grandchildren and one more on the way.

An Irish wake will be held by the family in her honor, but the date has not yet been set. This will probably take place in California or Oregon, later this year.

Pat’s friends in the Rockport area are planning a memorial. Details, when available, will be published in the Rockport Pilot newspaper,

Arrangements and care entrusted to Resthaven Funeral Home, Aransas Pass.

 

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