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Patricia Ann “Pat” Melcher, 90 of Hancock, MI, passed away peacefully in her sleep on September 20, 2021. Pat was born in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, to Gertrude and Howard Pfeifer on April 6, 1931. After a happy childhood surrounded by an extensive family, she graduated from Beaver Falls High School in 1949.
Pat moved to Miami, FL where she met and married her first husband, Duane Thayer. The couple moved to Houghton where Pat worked as a secretary and Duane attended college at Michigan Tech. Pat and Duane had 5 daughters (Cecile Cloutier (Chris), Marty Thayer (Jon Thompson), Mary Hoffman (Dee), Terese Hunwick (Mike), and Susan Liebau (Dan).
Pat raised her family in Houghton and, after her divorce from Duane, worked at D&N Bank, and the Daily Mining Gazette. In 1989, she retired and moved back to Beaver Falls to be with her family. In 1994, she married Charles Melcher and they traveled throughout the US together visiting friends and family, especially their grandchildren.
Dedicated to the Roman Catholic Church, Pat was an active member of many parishes (St. Mary’s, St. Ignatius, and St. Monica, among others). She was an active member of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and helped establish a funeral ministry for which she was awarded Volunteer of the Year by the Diocese of Pittsburgh.
Visitation will be held on Friday at Spratt Funeral Home in Beaver Falls, PA on Friday October 22, 2021 from 3:00-5:00 PM. A mass of Christian burial will be held on Saturday October 23, 2021 at St. Monica’s Catholic Church at 10:00 AM. The family requests that people make donations in support of St. Monica’s Catholic Academy of Beaver Falls, PA or St. Vincent de Paul of Hancock, MI.
