Patricia Elizabeth Sneed

Patricia Elizabeth Sneed was born on January 4^th, 1936, as one of six children to Adrian Doiron and Emma Doiron (née Vanderhider) in San Saba, Texas. Patricia is survived by her daughter Suzanne and Suzanne’s husband Jesse, whom she considered a son, and three grandchildren David, Adrienne, and Jonathan.

Patricia spent the first years of her life in San Saba, Texas where her father was the local blacksmith. She was the only girl in a family that included five boys. They were a close-knit family. Patricia and her brothers, who she cared deeply for, stayed in close contact throughout their lives and made it a priority to go on vacations together and meet for family reunions and events. She is survived by her younger brothers Allen and Charles.

Patricia’s parents moved to San Antonio, Texas when her father began his job at Kelly Field as part of the expansion of war industry during World War 2. This was a beneficial move because the great depression had greatly impacted Patricia’s family while in San Saba. Patricia’s mother worked in the cafeteria of an elementary school. Her parents, both of whom were very important to her, stayed in San Antonio for the rest of their lives.  

Patricia graduated from high school in 1953. The next year she met the love of her life, Edgar Sneed, at the Handy Andy grocery store where they both were working at the time. They were soon married in 1955 in San Antonio. In 1957 they welcomed their only child, Suzanne, into their family. They were an incredibly close, if sometimes imperfect, family. However, it was never in doubt, and clear to everybody in their lives, that beneath any imperfections was the deep love and affection they had for each other. Suzanne was an invaluable part of their lives until the end. Patricia and Edgar were married for 67 years until he passed away earlier this year.

The family moved often during the next couple of decades due to Edgar’s academic work both as a student and professor. This period was at times hard for Patricia, because she was unable to put down long-term roots. However, she took a great deal of meaning from her full-time job which was taking care of her immediate and extended family. She also took university classes and worked for the federal government at different points during these years. The talents that she used to show her love for her family were sewing, cooking, and baking. Patricia and Edgar also made many friends during these years and often had dinner parties and get togethers with them.

Eventually Patricia and Edgar settled back in San Antonio where he worked for the University of the Incarnate Word and then Lackland Air Force Base and where she worked for the Social Security Administration as a paralegal. During their time in San Antonio, they became involved in Marriage Encounter, a group that brought together Christian couples for retreats to strengthen the bonds of their marriages and enjoy the fellowship of other couples. Patricia and Edgar often gave presentations at these retreats. They made lifelong friends with many of the people they met through Marriage Encounter.   

A special time in Patricia’s life was the period that her and Edgar spent in Germany from 1984 to 1988 when Edgar worked at Rammstein Air Force Base. During this time, they again made many lifelong friends. They were able to extensively travel around Europe, visiting Antwerp, the Amalfi Coast, the Champagne Region, the Soviet Union, and many more interesting locations. They loved to share their stories of this happy period of their life with family. In 1988 they moved back to San Antonio to be near to their growing number of grandchildren.   

Her daughter Suzanne remembers how much loving effort Patricia put into organizing family events and the amazing and unique clothes that she would sew for her when she was young. Jesse remembers the numerous fish fry’s that she put together after successful fishing trips and how much it meant to her to babysit her grandchildren, often being available on short notice. Her three grandchildren were incredibly important to her. She never failed to make each of them feel loved. Mema, as they knew her by, was ever present throughout their lives, always providing guidance, support, and care. Each of them knew that their Mema would always be by their side. David fondly remembers the effort that she put into making birthdays and Christmas special, and how she always made him feel loved. Adrienne looks back on the special time she spent baking and making crafts with her. Jonathan recollects how meaningful the time that he spent with her was, especially the thousands of rounds of Payday that he played with her after school and the Friday nights when she would read and tell stories to him until he would fall asleep.

Patricia is going home to San Antonio to be reunited with her loving husband and lifelong partner, Edgar, at the Fort Sam Houston cemetery. Her family takes comfort knowing that they are both at home and will be together once again.