Pamela Ruchat McClendon

Pamela “Pam” Ruchat McClendon, 68, of Madison, Alabama, passed away peacefully in her home on Thursday, June 8, 2023. Though her battle with a glioblastoma brain tumor was short, she showed courage in facing life’s challenges with a smile. Pam was born in Verdun, France, on August 19, 1954. She met her husband of 50 years while serving in the U.S. Air Force. A former U.S. Air Force Air Traffic Controller and contractor for the CIA and U.S. Department of the Army, she enjoyed traveling and living abroad with her family. A self-proclaimed Parrot Head, Pam loved music, scuba diving, kayaking, learning new things, and spending time with family and her French Bulldog, Sir Winston Geoffrey.

Mrs. McClendon is survived by her husband, Rainer “Mac”; daughter, Jennifer “Jenn” Donaldson; son, Shaun (Jennifer) McClendon; grandson, Michael Connor Donaldson; mother, Elisabeth A. Darden; Swiss godmother, Claude Fehlmann; sister, Elisabeth Darden; brother, Phillip (Nancy) Darden; sister, Katherine (James “Buddy”) Shorden; sister, Christine (Charles “Chick”) Beaulieu; and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her father, Jesse Alison Darden, and her aunt, Phyllis Myers Inners.

A Celebration of Life Gathering for Pam will be held Friday, June 16, 2023, at 10:00 am at Valhalla Funeral Home & Memory Gardens, 698 Winchester Rd Ne, Huntsville, Alabama 35811, followed by Military Honors at 10:45 am in Valhalla's Celebration Chapel. Please enter through the Visitation entrance and not the Chapel entrance.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.valhallafunerals.com for the McClendon family.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in her name to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (stjude.org) or Disabled American Veterans (ihelpveterans.org).

Interment will be Monday, June 19, 2023, at 10:30 am at Roselawn Funeral Home & Memory Gardens, 5350 NW Broad Street, Murfreesboro, Tennessee 37129.