Patricia A. Ferrell

Patricia A. Ferrell, of Ithaca, passed away peacefully on Saturday, January 22nd, 2022, after a long illness. She was 70 years old.

She is survived by her son, Paul (Margie Himes) Ferrell; daughter, Pam (Serge) Isaacson; grandchildren, Griffin, Elizabeth, and Julian; and brothers, Steve and Stu Stinard. She is predeceased by her parents, Charlie and Ann Stinard; brother, Stanley; and sister, Barb.

A graduate of Ithaca High School in 1969, Pat was a hairdresser for over forty-five years, opening Pat's Beauty Parlor on N. Aurora Street in 1972 and later running the salon out of her home. She also spent many years working in the McGraw House community, which she felt a deep connection with.

Pat was a lifelong Ithacan. She loved to take road trips around the country but Ithaca was always home and she was determined to never live anywhere else. Over the years, she walked countless miles throughout her neighborhood on West Hill where she spent much of her life married to Stan Ferrell, along the water at Stewart Park, and all over downtown Ithaca where she grew up and returned to in later years after moving to McGraw House. She was a Catholic and member of Immaculate Conception Church for all of her life.

Pat was a natural caretaker and homemaker and it's where her light shone the brightest—from being a central figure in the lives of her siblings, to being a loving and engaged mom to her two children, to caring for her father in the later years of his life, and later experiencing the joy of becoming a grandma (and one who made the most amazing cookies). She also loved animals and was a mom to many cats throughout the years, including Bella and Jake who would join her on walks around town toward the end of her life. The animals in the neighborhood always greeted her with wagging tails as she always traveled with a pocket full of biscuits or other treats.

Until the end, she held on strongly to her love of music, still dancing or tapping her feet to favorites like Bobby Darin, Frankie Valli, and Neil Diamond. Along with the love of her family and caretakers, music surrounded her—bringing comfort and joy—in the last days of her life.

A service in honor of her life will be held by Bangs Funeral Home early this summer. In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift in memory of Pat to The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration (theaftd.org).