Patricia King

1962 - 2023

Patricia King
February 17, 1962 - June 5, 2023
A truly extraordinary woman, a shooting star, bright and luminescent, Patricia Ann King, died on June 5, 2023. Patricia will be remembered as an amazing sister and fabulous friend who touched deeply all who knew her. Born in Denver on February 17, 1962, Patricia grew up in Golden, Colorado. She graduated from Golden High School in 1980 and Colorado State University in 1984 majoring in Textiles and Fabrics.
She began her career as a marketing intern at J.W. Robinson's in Los Angeles. After graduating from college, Patricia entered the Executive Training Program at Neiman Marcus in Dallas where she spent the next fifteen years assuming positions of increasing responsibility. While there she developed a keen sense of style and made many lifelong friends. Over the course of her career, she held marketing and merchandising positions at various specialty retail-focused companies, but she found her true calling at Williams-Sonoma where – working with industry legends like Chuck Williams, Julia Child, and Thomas Keller – she was able to combine her professional career with a love of cooking. Her interest in the world of food found expression later in senior positions with Trader Joe's, which took her to salmon runs in Alaska; Ghirardelli Chocolate Company, where she learned in Switzerland the secrets of making and merchandising fine chocolate; the California Olive Oil Council, where she became a certified olive oil sommelier at the Robert Mondavi Institute; and her last position at Sightglass Coffee, where she came to understand the nuanced differences between varieties of coffee beans. She had many titles from Executive Director to Chief Executive Officer but Patricia was happiest as Captain of the Kitchen where she brought the same high standards she maintained professionally to entertaining friends at home.
She loved intensely her family, friends, and colleagues and went out of her way to show thoughtfulness to all those around her. In addition to her professional responsibilities, Patricia served on several non-profit boards, including Project Open Hand, where her generosity and skills at governance enabled the organization to deliver thousands of meals to communities in the Bay Area.
Patricia was obsessive about the cats in her life. Starting with Mittens, a domestic shorthair with a white chin and paws, the family cat was purported to have lived two decades. Over the years many cats came in and out of Patricia's life. Henry, her last, was adopted by a good friend. She was also fascinated with birds, taking long nature hikes in the Presidio of San Francisco near where she lived and drawing beautiful, colored illustrations of what she saw. She was a prolific reader and enjoyed the companionship of her book clubs.
Patricia will be sorely missed by all who knew her. Her positivity and kindness was infectious. She made others feel comfortable being who they were knowing that they were loved and accepted. She is survived by her brother, Robert, and many dear and close friends. An event celebrating Patricia's life is being planned for Fall 2023. In lieu of flowers, donations in Patricia's memory can be made to "For the Love of Alex, Inc." which funds emergency and life-saving veterinary care for pets of low-income households (https://www.fortheloveofalex.org/donate).