Charlotte Patricia “Pat” Phelps, 97

Charlotte Patricia Phelps (Pat to her friends and family), was born in Ainsworth, NE August 5, 1927, to Charlotte Belle and Orville Alfred Ralston. She was the youngest of three siblings, following Janet Muriel and Robert Orville. The family moved to Valentine in 1937, where Pat met her grade school classmate Gilbert Phelps, who promised himself that someday he would marry the charming new girl in the bonnet.

A decade later they wed. After dental school and an army posting in Germany, they settled in Seattle, WA. While he practiced dentistry, she read to, clothed, and cooked nutritious meals for their five children. In addition to homemaking, Pat was a PEO member, and studied art and sold books at Seattle Pacific University.

She loved the Washington coastline, mountains, lakes, and rivers; toting her kids on camping and fishing adventures. Pat’s golden years were spent in Sun City, AZ, where she made friends, made art, and swam to her heart’s content. She died December 28, 2024, after 97 years and a long battle with Alzheimer’s. While her eldest, Breck McDowell, and husband Gilbert McDowell predeceased her, she is survived by her son Bryan Guy; her daughters Kathe Clare, Allise Ann (Lisa), Janet (Louise) Phelps; and her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She is remembered for her adventurous spirit, her grateful heart, and her love of nature and beauty. Gilbert was fond of teasing her for a backwards brag she made as a schoolgirl, “I can milk a pig and ride a cow!” If any midwestern girl could, it would be Pat.