The eldest son of Edna and Aubrey Taylor, Pat was born in Century, Florida on November 7, 1949. Pat’s father, who was involved in the real estate business, moved his family to Citronelle, Alabama during the early 1950’s “oil boom” that occurred there during that time. In the 4th grade, Pat met the love of his life, Sherrye Bellew, whose family had also chased the oil industry to Citronelle from Beaumont, Texas. That was the beginning of what would ultimately become a lifetime together. During high school, Pat played basketball, served as Senior Class President, and worked in the oil field. In 1970, Pat and Sherrye were married.
Following high school, Sherrye convinced Pat to attend college, so he moved to the “big city” of Mobile, Alabama and enrolled at the University of South Alabama, where he ultimately went on to obtain a Bachelor’s degree in History. In 1972, Pat took a teaching job at St. Paul’s Episcopal School in Mobile while he studied for the LSAT with intentions to go to law school. Instead, Pat fell in love with education, returned to the University of South Alabama to obtain a Master’s Degree in Secondary Education, and ultimately devoted over 30 years to St. Paul’s, where he held the positions of Middle School Director, High School Director, Principal, and a number of other “unofficial titles” (e.g., parking attendant, concession stand worker, school trip chaperone, maintenance man, assistant coach, etc.) After St. Paul’s, Pat became Headmaster at Jackson Academy in Jackson, Mississippi, where he served from 2007 to 2017. Following his “retirement” from Jackson Academy, Pat would go on to serve as Interim Headmaster at Ascension Episcopal School in Lafayette, Louisiana, on two separate occasions. In addition to his formal educational positions, he was a frequent consultant, speaker, and accreditor for various schools and institutions, including the Alabama Association of Independent Schools, Alabama Independent School Association, and Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Pat received multiple awards, recognitions, and proclamations for his educational leadership, including recognition by Governor Kay Ivey and induction into the AISA Hall of Fame.
Though Pat was committed to his profession, his family was his pride. “Chief” and “Meme” had three children, Jeremy (Rachael) Taylor, Kristin (Mike) Parsons, and Jason (Tiffany) Taylor, and eleven wonderful grandchildren: Will Taylor, Claire Taylor, Madison (Bailey) Boudreaux, Logan Parsons, Conner Parsons, Jon Paul Ashworth, Harper Taylor, Samuel Taylor, Luke Taylor, and Callie Taylor (and an 11th grandbaby on the way, due in December 2024). He frequently expressed how proud he was of his “adult” grandchildren who are all either recent college graduates or college students across the Southeast, and of his “littles” who are all beginning to make their mark on this world. In his free time, Pat cherished spending time with his family, as well as landscape design, yardwork, wine, grilling, and traveling (particularly, mountain trips).
Pat is also survived by his sister, Trudy (Eddie) Holden, Edsel (Elise) Holden, Aubrey Holden, Sister-in-law and Brother-in-Law Lynne and Rick Bellew, Morgan (Cory) Wiggins, Ford Wiggins and Grayson Wiggins (“The Twiggins”), Molly (Nic) Fulmer, Henry Fulmer, and Hadley Fulmer.
The family gives special thanks to Dr. Curry McEvoy at Southern Cancer Center, the Oncology and Radiation Oncology Departments at M.D. Anderson, the staff of Thomas Hospital, Dr. Bennett Hooks, Dr. Lee Thompson, and Springhill Home Health and Hospice.
Visitation will be held at Radney Funeral Home in Mobile on Friday, July 5, 2024, from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM. A private family service will be held separately. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Southern Cancer Center, M.D. Anderson, or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Condolences may be offered at www.radneyfuneralhome-mobile.com.
