Patricia Ann Knight

OLEAN — Patricia “Patti” Ann Knight peacefully passed away Wednesday (Oct. 27, 2021) in Olean General Hospital, following a brief illness. Patricia was born June 17, 1941, in Finedon, Northamptonshire, England, the daughter of Bernard Edgar and Nora Horrigan Clements. She was formerly married to AT1 (USCG Ret.) Alfred F. Knight. Patricia was born the older of two daughters to Ben and Nora Clements. As a young girl she loved ballet and was proud of being crowned Finedon Carnival Queen, and Finedon May Queen, as well. As a teenager she was a dedicated and hard worker and served at many interesting jobs, working at Cresta Service Station; The Ideal Café; Saxby’s Pie Factory; and Mattel Toy, Inc. At the age of 19, she met and married Alfred F Knight, who was stationed at RAF Mildenhall serving in the U.S. Air Force. They proceeded to have their first daughter, Jacqueline, and then were transferred to the United States, where she bravely left everything familiar behind, and continued to live and travel as a proud military wife, first as a U.S. Air Force wife, then as a U.S. Coast Guard spouse, to Alfred. As they traveled and enjoyed many different locations throughout the U.S., they welcomed son James, then daughter Jennifer, into their lives. One of those places was Kodiak, Alaska. She loved to tell stories of when she worked at a seafood cannery, sorting every kind of seafood from shrimp to Alaskan king crab. She enjoyed music and dancing the night away. She especially loved swing and line dancing. She also liked the occasional glass of wine, which she would enjoy when she traveled back to the UK to visit her sister Judi; Judi’s husband, Rick; and their children, Mark and Debbi, as well as other family and friends. Many of her fun stories developed from these trips. Additionally, she enjoyed playing Bingo and deer hunting with her family in Northern Michigan. She once again bravely left everything familiar behind and moved to Florida. She found a job she loved as a wire harness builder for E-One Fire Trucks at Class One Harness in Ocala, Fla. There she made many great friends and enjoyed the beautiful Florida weather and several of her grandchildren. In the year 2000, she became a U.S. citizen, and was proudly sworn in as such in Orlando, Fla. When it came time to retire, she decided to move near her son, daughter-in-law and additional grandchildren in Olean. She lived at Brookside Community, and once again, made many friends who Patricia loved to laugh, talk and joke with. She was especially proud of her English heritage and always shared her many interesting stories with them. She enjoyed encouraging and helping others in her community, and visited many of the other residents when they when they were unable to get out. She was a member of the Loyal Order of Moose and spent much of her spare time there and supported many of their charitable causes. Her love and care for others became evident when she became ill, and so many people came by her side to help and encourage her. For this, her family will be eternally grateful. Her life was well lived and she was well loved. Patricia will be fiercely missed, by not only her family, but by many friends the world over. Patricia is survived by three children, Jacqueline A. Edelmann of Tampa, Fla., James A. (Kathy) Knight of Olean and Jennifer L. (Russell) Barlow of Ocala; six grandchildren, Danielle, Anthony, Kayla, Joshua, Justin and Travis; a sister, Judi Stocks of Swindon, England; and niece and nephew, Mark and Debbi. Patricia is predeceased by her parents; former husband; an infant son, Gary D. Knight in 1964; and brother-in-law, Rick D Stocks. A graveside service was held in St. Bonaventure Cemetery, Allegany. A public service will be held at a date and time to be announced in the future. Arrangements are under the direction of the Letro-McIntosh-Spink Funeral Home, Inc., 646 E. State St., Olean. Online condolences may be made at www.letromcintoshspinkfuneralhome.com.