Patricia Gail Stonis Beckwith

Patricia passed away on November 24, 2014 from a heart attack. She was born February 19, 1937 in Philidelphia, Pennsylvania. She grew up in River Forest, Illinois where she tap danced and was on the high school tennis team. Patricia attended Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida from 1956 to 1959. She was a member of the Kappa Delta Sorority and Kappa Pi – The International Art Fraternity as well as The Kappa Alpha Rose. She graduated with a BS in Fine Arts. While attending college, she met Henry Beckwith of Jacksonville, FL, whom she married in 1960. Henry introduced her to boating, oyster roasts and fishing. They settled near where Henry grew up on the river in the Arlington Section of Jacksonville, FL. They were married for six years. During that time her she had two children, Kathryn Ann and Henry, Jr. She remained in Jacksonville where she did substitue teaching, shuttled kids to scouts, YMCA football, basketball and little league. She loved gardening and arranging flowers and during a chance meeting with a florist, she started working at Simpson’s Carousel Flower Shop. She then worked at Tresca’s Florist and Richard’s Florist in Avondale. In her later years, she lived at Baptist Towers where she worked in the Library and helped deliver the food for Meals on Wheels to some of the residents. Her green thumb was widely known and many residents would leave their dead or dying plants at her doorstep to be revived and revive them she did! Her mother, Geneiveve Stonis, passed in 1969. Her father, Joseph Stonis, passed in 2009. Her brother passed at the age of 16. She is survived by her stepmother, Doris Stonis, daughter Kathy Hayes (Brian), son Henry Beckwith (Leanne), grandchildren Brian Beckwith (Lydia), Katie Kusiak (Brian), Stephanie Hayes and great grandchildren Genevieve Kusiak and Vincent Beckwith. We will celebrate Patricia Gail Stonis Beckwith’s life at 11:00am Wednesday, December 17th, 2014 at Leonora Garden in Oaklawn Cemetery, 4801 San Jose Boulevard, Jacksonville, Florida 32207. Hardage-Giddens, The Oaklawn Chapel is serving the family.