Patrick F. Chavez

Chavez, Patrick

On June 30, 2018, Patrick Chavez, age 64, passed away at home after a seven month battle with pancreatic cancer which he fought hard, bravely and with dignity. Just 4 weeks prior to his passing, Pat completed the 5K walk for Polly’s Run in just under 46 minutes.

Pat was a loving husband, father, and Papa. He is survived by his wife of 42 years, Sandra; his daughters, Luisa and husband, Gabriel Massey, and Tricia and husband, Devin Brown; his grandchildren Sam, Tessa and soon-to-be-born Rowan Patrick; and a large extended family and friends. Words cannot express how much he will be missed. Pat was predeceased by his parents, Lorenzo and Carolyn Chavez, his brother, Richard, and his granddaughter, Noelle Terese.

Pat earned his B.S. degrees in Math and Physics at NM Tech, followed by an M.S. in Applied Mathematics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Ph.D. in Computational Mathematics at Cornell. He was a respected computational analyst and Distinguished Member of Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratories. Pat retired in 2005.

Pat was very active and curious about the world around him. He was a devoted bicyclist and could be seen almost every morning riding the entire Bosque Trail. Pat was also an avid fly fisherman, calling the San Juan River his home waters. Pat loved to travel and saw most of the U.S and Europe, as well as Mexico, Iceland, Turkey, China, Peru, India, and Thailand. He had hoped to walk the Camino de Santiago next year. Pat also enjoyed his post-retirement gig as a “standardized patient” for the UNM School of Medicine.

The family is grateful to the wonderful doctors and staff at the UNM Comprehensive Cancer Center; they cared and they did their best to help Pat beat this beast called pancreatic cancer. We are also grateful for the UNMH TS-ICU nursing staff whose professionalism was only surpassed by their compassion. Lastly, the help we received from the staff of Heartland Hospice, especially Margaret, helped us through the most difficult part of Pat’s journey.

There will be a viewing starting at 8:00 a.m. followed by the Funeral Mass at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, July 5, 2018 at San Jose de Los Duranes, 2110 Los Luceros Rd NW. A reception will follow at the church hall. Memorial contributions made to Cancer Services of New Mexico www.cancerservicesnm.org are appreciated in lieu of flowers.

FRENCH – University

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