Obituary of Patricia Shanahan

Patricia Shanahan, known to her friends and family as Trish, died on Monday, October 19, 2009 after a short illness. She was 75 and had lived in Darien/Rowayton, CT area for over 45 years. Born in Pittsburgh, PA, in 1934 to Donald Camp and Dorothy Fagan Anderson, Patricia Clyde Anderson Shanahan was married for 42 years to James Gormley Shanahan, who passed away in 1999. Mrs. Shanahan received a bachelor's degree in English in 1956 from Carlow College, where she learned to translate literature into Braille, a skill she put to use upon graduation. Six months after graduation, she married Mr. Shanahan. After stops in Ogden, UT, Columbus, OH, and Pittsburgh, the couple moved to Rowayton, CT in 1964, where they lived for eight years; and Mrs. Shanahan volunteered for the Junior League and other charitable organizations. After the family moved to Darien in 1972, Mrs. Shanahan began working for Rogers, Casey & Barksdale. She worked for that company and several of its offshoots for over 20 years. Upon her retirement, she traveled as often as she could including treks to her ancestral roots in Ireland and Scotland. In her spare time, Mrs. Shanahan was a noted needlecraft artisan and was particularly known for crafting sweaters that were the height of fashion and made their wearers the envy of all. She often created demonstration models for the local yarn shops, which would give her complicated patterns and ask her to apply them to various apparel before displaying her finished work in their stores as the gold standards for patrons. An avid reader, Mrs. Shanahan also enjoyed playing tennis, platform tennis and bridge. In addition to raising her four beloved children, she was a dog lover, a cat owner and a fish keeper. Mrs. Shanahan is survived by her three daughters, Lisa Shanahan, Kathleen Shanahan and Louise Schmidt all of Darien, CT; her son, Tony Shanahan of Norwalk, CT; four granddaughters, Meg and Kate Tomlinson; and Lana and Sommer Schmidt all of Darien; a grandson, Wiley Schmidt also of Darien; and a bichon frise, Sabina. A wake is scheduled for Thursday, October 22, 2009 from 5:00 to 8:00 PM at the Edward Lawrence Funeral Home, 2119 Post Road, Darien. A funeral mass is scheduled for Friday, October 23, 2009 at 3:00 PM at St. Thomas More R.C. Church, 374 Middlesex Road, Darien. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Gallivant, a transportation service for senior citizens in Darien. Donations can be mailed to Gallivant, c/o Darien Social Services, 2 Renshaw Road, Darien, CT 06820. Funeral Home: Edward Lawrence Funeral Home 2119 Post Road Darien, CT USA 06820