Patricia S. Lachelt

1933 - 2015

Patricia Stevenson Lachelt, 81, of Arcadia passed away Thursday, January 8, 2015, at Arcadia Methodist Hospital.

She was born in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, the daughter of John Stephen and Anna May Stevenson, and grew up in a small coal mining patch in the town of Phillips, Pennsylvania. Patricia graduated from Duquesne University with a degree in nursing and was president of her class. She served three years as an officer in the United States Army as a nurse at the hospital in Fort Benning, Georgia, where she met her husband Lowell Lachelt. They married in 1958 and eventually settled in Arcadia, California.

Patricia continued her education and received two Master's Degrees, one in Health Studies and the other in Educational Administration, both from the California State University of Los Angeles. She was a Certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner and completed her program at the University of Southern California.

Employed by the Pasadena Unified School District, Patricia was the Director of Health Programs and worked for the district for more than 20 years. In 2001, she was the recipient of the National School Nurse Administrator of the Year award for her excellence in the administration of school nursing services and health programs.

Upon retiring from the school district, Patricia taught at Azusa Pacific University in the School of Nursing. She was a well-loved professor and enjoyed working with the students at the University. When asked why she kept working after retirement, she said "The students keep me young."

Patricia had an incredible loyalty to her family and a strong devotion to her catholic faith. She had many friends from the Republican Women's Club and other women's groups from the community. She enjoyed going on walks with her beloved dog, Kenzie, and shopping at Nordstrom and Macys. People were drawn to her energy and enthusiasm for life.

She is survived by her husband Lowell, her three children, Brent Robert Lachelt and wife Laura, Kathryn Lachelt Brown and husband Charles, and Mary Lachelt Dennis; grandchildren, Andrew Lachelt, Olivia, Charlie, and Eliza Brown, and Audrey and Ava Dennis; brothers Leo E. Stevenson (Fort Worth, Texas) and Dr. W. Daniel Stevenson (Dallas, Texas), and many devoted nieces and nephews.

A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, January 15, 2015, at Holy Angels Catholic Church, in Arcadia. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a scholarship set up in Patricia's name at the School of Nursing at Azusa Pacific University. Checks should be made out to Azusa Pacific University and indicated for the Patricia Lachelt Nursing Scholarship Fund, and mailed to Azusa Pacific University, Advancement Department, PO Box 7000, Azusa, California 91702-7000.