Patricia Irene Whitlow

Patricia Irene Whitlow died Oct. 18, after a long and courageous battle with interstitial lung disease. She was 84.

Whitlow was born on May 18, 1932 in Castro Valley to Timothy and Ethel Collins. She graduated from Hayward High School in 1950, and her first job was at Parks Air Force Hospital in Dublin.

Later, Whitlow went to work in marketing for Aero Jet General in San Ramon, where she met Harold (Hal) Whitlow, whom she married in Las Vegas in 1965. She also worked as a secretary for the city manager of Livermore.

After living in Livermore for a number of years, Whitlow and her husband built a home on a lot they had purchased in 1970 and moved to Discovery Bay in 1976. She became active in the community and served on the Discovery Bay Homeowners' Association.

In 1980, Whitlow went to work at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where she was an administrative assistant in the weapons and laser programs. During her tenure at  the Lab, she attended night classes at San Francisco State to earn a bachelor’s degree in January 1995, followed by a master’s degree in human resources and organization development in December 1998.

Whitlow retired from the Laboratory and spent her time traveling with her husband, taking various boating trips on their boat, the WANA. The pair enjoyed their yearly trips to San Francisco Bay and, while health permitting, wintering in Palm Desert with friends.

Whitlow and her husband were avid boaters, and she served as the commodore of Discovery Bay Yacht Club in 1989 and the commodore of Weber Point Yacht Club in 2013.

Pat is survived by her husband of 51 years, Hal; her son, Augie Grisel; granddaughter, Rebecca Coleman; sister-in-law, Shirley Eggers; and Shirley’s three children, Scott Barradas, Todd Barradas and Samantha Wagoner. She was preceded in death by her parents, Timothy and Ethel Collins, as well as her son Patrick Grisel.

Her celebration of life will be held on Nov. 26, at 1 p.m., at the Discovery Bay Yacht Club.