Cover photo for Patricia Gillespie Willins Ph.'s Obituary
Patricia Gillespie Willins Ph. Profile Photo
1928 Patricia 2012

Patricia Gillespie Willins Ph.

November 26, 1928 — September 6, 2012

WILLINS, PAT MCCALMONT (GILLESPIE), Ph.D.

Patricia Willins, 83, a resident of Albuquerque since 1950, died Thursday, September 6, 2012. She is survived by her son, Stan Gillespie and wife, Laura Turnbough Gillespie; daughter, Gail Gillespie Cole and husband, Anthony Cole, Ph.D. of Kingsport, TN; and grandchildren, Brent and Shawna Gillespie, Zachary Cole of New Zealand, and Tyler Cole of Tampa, FL. Pat was a native of Nashville, TN and was born in 1928. She was active in education, civic and mental health fields and her lifelong love and interest was in helping children and their parents in her professional office from 1967 until she retired in 2000, particularly in the fields of corrective reading and counseling. Her professional life was devoted to children. She was selected to represent New Mexico as one of fifty participants for the International Interdisciplinary Seminar in Reading at the University of California in Santa Clara. She received her B.A., Master's and Ph.D from The University of New Mexico, where she was the graduate assistant in reading for two years at the Manzanita Center on the UNM campus. She taught for UNM, and also in workshops and as a temporary teacher for Albuquerque Public Schools. As a private Counselor and reading specialist, Dr. Willins taught many children and adults to read. She served as president of the Junior Women's Club and the Albuquerque Association of Mental Health. She was a charter board member of the International Reading Association, Bernalillo County chapter and a charter Commissioner on the Mayor's Commission on Adult Literacy. She was a member of First Presbyterian Church where she was a Sunday School teacher for the primary grades, and a deacon for the church. In 2004, she was among those honored as a 50-year member. She was a board member of the Albuquerque Child Guidance Center, the Community Council and the Albuquerque Rehabilitation Center. Patricia was a member of the National Reading Conference, the Albuquerque Association for Learning Disability, Pi Lambda Theta Honorary Society, and Literacy Volunteers of America where she was an instructor. She was a member of the Petal Pushers Garden Club and continued her love of growing geraniums inside her home during the winter months and outside in the summertime. She enjoyed feeding the wild birds and dabbling in oil painting. Patricia was a gifted pianist. She traveled often to Switzerland, Germany, and Austria - renting a car for 3 or 4 weeks, and photographing landscapes. She was an active golfer and bridge player at the Albuquerque Country Club where she served as secretary of the Women's Golf Association. Services will be held on Monday, September 10, 2012, 3:00 pm at First Presbyterian Church, 215 Locust St. NE. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the All Faiths Receiving Home or the Albuquerque Animal Humane Society. Please visit our online guest book for Dr. Paticia Willins at .

FRENCH
1111 University Blvd NE
505-843-6333

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