Patricia Park Engelmann

Patricia was born on March 10, 1931 in Champaign, Illinois, the only child of Orlando and Alberta (Fritsche) Park. She graduated from Evanston Township High School in 1949 and attended Northwestern University where her father was professor of biological science. She followed in her father’s footsteps studying science and graduated from Northwestern University in 1953 with a bachelor’s degree in Biology. It was in science class that she met her husband, Manfred “Monty” David Engelmann of Chicago. They were wed in January of 1954 and embarked on a life journey that took them through three other Big 10 university towns – Champaign, Ann Arbor and East Lansing.

They settled in East Lansing in 1960 when Monty accepted an MSU professorship in the Natural Sciences department. The family joined University United Methodist Church in 1963 and continued as active members. An avid writer and community organizer, Pat helped found the Tamarisk Neighborhood Association with her husband and wrote, edited and published the neighborhood newsletter. She put her writing, editing and storytelling skills to work at the church as well and edited the weekly UUMC newsletter for more than 25 years. She also served as the church’s secretary for many years. Combining her writing skills and science background, she finished her professional career as an administrative assistant in the MSU Department of Physiology, editing research papers, journal reports and correspondence.

With her sunhat on and one of her many pairs of binoculars in hand, birding was one of Pat’s favorite hobbies and pastimes. She was a longtime supporter of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and scouted bird species from her home in East Lansing and during summer vacations at the family cabin in LeRoy, Michigan. She turned in regular reports as a science citizen to help the Cornell Lab track breeding behaviors and migration patterns.

Pat is survived by Monty, her devoted husband of 62 years; son Paul; daughters Jennifer (Moody) and Carolyn (Pedersen); daughter-in-law Sarah Engelmann; sons-in-law Palmer Moody and Helge Pedersen; and five grandchildren, David Engelmann, Samantha Moody, Frederick Moody, Thomas Engelmann and Astrid Pedersen.

A memorial service will be held on Sunday, October 16, with time to be determined, at University United Methodist Church, 1120 South Harrison Road, East Lansing, (517) 351-7030.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in memory of Patricia Engelmann to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, www.birds.cornell.edu.