Pat Girard
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Pat Girard, a longtime resident of Corpus Christi and Ingleside, took an offer she could not refuse on April 28, 2018, at the age of 79. She and God decided on a new life plan which includes praying, laughter, dancing, reunions, and endless love.
Daughter of the late M.L. Girard and Edna Cauthorn, Pat was born a fearless rebel April 5, 1939, doing things her way until the very end. She set off for the University of Colorado as a young woman, opened her first of many successful businesses in the sixties, developed and mastered both ceramic and fiber arts, married an old man (as her father called him) at the age of 37, and raised a daughter she loved dearly.
At the age of 71 she was diagnosed with Goodpasture Syndrome. Pat decided to bypass the pity parties in favor of finding ways to continue traveling and loving life. At the age of 78 she was given the final obstacle she was to conquer before saying goodbye, a right below knee amputation. Pat was told she may never walk again; challenge accepted! She not only walked again but did so with ease and enjoyment, much to the amazement of her prosthetist.
Pat made the decision to be grateful, happy, and joyful for the full life she lead, instead of being sad about the roadblocks she hit along the way. Always be your best, do right by people, do not settle, wish your enemies well, love with all your heart, and never forget Jesus loves you were all her most frequent words of advice.
Pat is preceded in death by her parents; husband, Harold Newman; and oldest brother, Robert Girard. She is survived by her brother, Jerry Girard; daughter, Rynnee Newman, and son-in-law Mark Martinez; step-children, Wallace Newman and Lindy Sohn; her spiritually adopted daughter and son, Faye and Daniel Nunnelee; and numerous step-grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
We would like to invite you to celebrate the mark she left on this world by attending her memorial mass at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 12, at St. Philip the Apostle Catholic Church, 3513 Cimarron Boulevard, Corpus Christi TX 78414; followed by a reception. A rosary will be held at 7 p.m. Friday, May 11 at the same church.
In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to Pat Girard's Dialysis at Sea Memorial Fund. She enjoyed traveling, something that became very expensive as a dialysis patient. Many people with renal disease will never travel again due to the financial burden. In her name, we would like to help economically strapped dialysis patients with the financial costs of dialysis while taking a Dialysis at Sea cruise. You may donate online at GoFundMe.com, simply search for Pat Girard.