Patricia Nell Ferguson Weaver

1944 - 2016

PATRICIA NELL FERGUSON WEAVER
Aug 9, 1944 - Sept 16, 2016
Resident of Palo Alto
Patricia Nell Ferguson Weaver passed away peacefully in her sleep September 16, 2016, surrounded by her loving family.
Born in Dallas, Texas, Patricia Nell Ferguson the daughter of Julia and Charles Ferguson, spent her elementary and junior high school years moving back and forth between Texas and California as her father's jobs in the insurance industry changed. Graduating from John Muir High School in Pasadena, California, she attended Stanford University where she earned a BA in French and an MA in Education. While at Stanford, she met Richard Weaver whom she married in 1966 following a two-year courtship. Patricia and Richard settled in their "forever house" in Palo Alto, where they lived since 1974.
Patricia's professional path always involved teaching. Before interrupting that career to have children, she taught French, History, and Girl's Physical Education at Hopkins Junior High and Irvington High in Fremont. When her children got older, she returned to teaching, as an SAT tutor, as a grader for Advanced Placement History and English classes, and occasionally as a classroom teacher, teaching English at Menlo-Atherton High School and Sacred Heart Prep as a long-term substitute or as a temporary replacement. However, her enthusiasm for helping people learn to think and write led her to fulfill her real passion which was to develop a tutoring and mentoring practice that she actively continued until just a few months before her death. In addition to working with students, Patricia helped to develop curriculum for local high school English departments while mentoring teachers, helping them to hone their skills.
Always a committed Christian, Patricia loved the Lord. Her twenty-seven year battle with breast cancer energized her to share God's love with all whom she came in contact. Instead of being embittered by her condition, she enthusiastically embraced each day as a gift from God that was to be lived with dignity and grace. Her ability to actively listen to others, empathize with their situations, and to provide thoughtful suggestions for solutions to their problems made her a much sought after friend, counselor, and companion.
Although family and friends sorely miss her, they all rejoice in the certainty that she is in heaven, free from her earthly pain and suffering. Patricia leaves behind her husband of 50 years, Richard Weaver of Palo Alto, CA, her daughter and son-in-law Tricia and Charlie Moss of San Francisco, CA, her son and daughter-in-law David and Katelyn Weaver and her granddaughter Clara Anne Gravelle Weaver of Seattle, WA, and her stepmother Bobbie Mitchell Ferguson of Palm Desert, CA.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions be sent to the women's cancer help organization -- Sense of Security California, 2636 Judah Street #133, San Francisco, CA 94122. http://www.senseofsecurityus.org


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