"Those of us who grew up with Trisha in Pullman remember her as an unfailingly upbeat, positive person. This picture her family selected captures well someone who always had a twinkle in her eye. For many of us, our memories include making music together. She played the viola in the middle-school and high-school orchestra and brought her singing skills to the folk mass at Sacred Heart Church. How fortunate the schools and churches that received her talents as the years went by. We missed seeing her at recent high school reunions but treasure the memories we hold. Rest in peace, Patricia. "
In loving memory of
Patricia Ann Swindal
August 21, 1953 - August 31, 2023
Patricia Ann Swindal died peacefully on August 31, 2023 at the Sunrise of Mercer Island assisted living facility near Seattle.
Tricia was born August 21, 1953 in Pullman Washington, to Marc and Rita Swindal. She graduated from Pullman High School, class of 1971, and then from Eastern Washington State University in 1975, where she studied Education to be a high school Spanish teacher. With degree in hand, she taught Spanish at schools in Oroville, Dayton, and then in the Seattle area at Kennedy High School and Forest Ridge School.
She had a natural musical ability, especially in the viola and piano, and performed as a member of both the Washington State University Orchestra and the Walla Walla Symphony. Later, Tricia brought her gifts in choir and piano to serve in parish music ministry in Chicago for five years, and then back to Washington in parishes in Edmonds, Issaquah, and Renton. Given her lifelong interest in reading, she eventually worked as a school librarian in these parish schools. She also found time to earn a Master's degree in Pastoral Studies at Seattle University
Tricia developed a love of travel, even serving as a trusted tour bus guide in the Canadian Rockies for several summers, and she made sojourns to Mexico, Spain, Cameroon, and Western Europe. In her later years, she settled in her home in Maple Valley, where she enjoyed planting trees and taking care of her many beloved dogs in her ample back yard.
Tricia drew many of her interests and passions from her faith and her family. Her parents, lifetime community volunteers, were the source of her inspiration to serve others. She is survived by her brothers Jim and John, and many nieces and nephews, and was pre-deceased by her parents, and her sisters Catherine (Rawson) and Mary (Grady).
Her life will be celebrated with a Mass of Christian Burial on Saturday, September 9, 9:00AM, at the Seattle University Chapel of St. Ignatius, 901 12th Avenue, Seattle. Donations in Tricia's memory may be made to Catholic Relief Services.