Patricia H. Powell

POWELL PATRICIA HAYDEN POWELL Passed away peacefully at Sibley Hospital on Thursday, September 30, 2010. She is survived by her six children, Susan Byrd (Jim), Jay Powell (Elissa Leonard), Matthew Powell (Mary), Tia Powell (Jim Shapiro), Libby Powell Lathi (Kishor), and Monica Powell Dolin (Mitchell); her fourteen grandchildren, Ian, Austin, and Taylor Byrd, Sam, Lucy, and Susie Powell, Kate, Anna, and Eleanor Powell, Sophia and Miranda Shapiro, Tess Velisek, and Claire and Seth Dolin; and her five siblings, Mimi Kelleher, Fr. Hillary Hayden, Jim Hayden, Dunstan Joseph Hayden (Barbara), and Martin Hayden (Leila). She was preceded in death by her husband, Jerome Powell. Mrs. Powell was born in Washington, DC, in 1926 and raised in Chevy Chase, the second of six children. Her father, James J. Hayden, was the Dean of the Columbus Law School and later a lecturer at Georgetown Law School. Her mother was a homemaker. Mrs. Powell majored in math and graduated valedictorian from Trinity College in Wash- ington, DC, in 1947, then worked for several years as a mathemetician for the Army Map Service. Mrs. Powell met her husband at Blessed Sacrament School, but they did not date until Mr. Powell returned from military service in World War II. They were married in 1950. Mr. Powell was a lawyer, retiring from private practice in 1986. He died in 2007. Mrs. Powell raised six children and was an active member of Blessed Sacrament Church and various clubs, including the Chevy Chase Club and the Sulgrave Club. She was also a volunteer with the Christ Child Society. With her youngest child in grade school, Mrs. Powell returned to school herself and obtained a Master''s degree in Liberal Arts from George Washington University. She worked part-time for the Republican National Committee until she and her husband retired. She loved and excelled at tennis, earning the familial nickname the Human Backboard. She also enjoyed bridge, reading, and golf. Mrs. Powell will be remembered fondly for her unflagging optimism, her sense of humor, and her quickness with a pun, all of which persisted even as Alzheimer''s Disease deprived her of her memory. She was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and friend. She will be dearly missed. A wake will be held this Sunday evening, October 3 from 7 until 9 p.m. at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament, 3630 Quesada St., NW, Washington, DC 20015. A Funeral Mass will be held there Monday, October 4 at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Trinity Washington University, 125 Michigan Ave., NE, Washington, DC 20017.