Patricia Arna Dargavell Wilson

Memorial Services for Patricia Arna Dargavell Wilson, 86, of West Monroe, will be held at 11:00 A.M., Saturday, June 10, 2023, in the chapel of Mulhearn Funeral Home with Rev. Stewart Sherman officiating. Visitation will be from 10:00 A.M. until service time on Saturday.

Patricia was born November 30, 1936, in Lexington, Kentucky, and passed away May 29, 2023, in her home.

Ms. Pat or “Gmaw” as she was loving called by so many worked for many years at the Wesley Foundation on NLU’s campus. Pat treated each student that came through like they were her own family: cooking for them, giving them advice, rides, or whatever was needed. After her time at Wesley was finished, she had several temporary jobs until finding the one that turned from temporary into a 20- year career and permanent family at The Overhead Door Company of Monroe. She cherished her time and relationships there.

In 2012 at the young age of 76, she decided to retire and take it easy, which lasted all of 2 months! She then went on to work in the shoe department at Stage Department store in West Monroe until it closed in 2020. She was awarded the Stage Associate of the Year award in 2016. She then worked for a brief time at Hobby Lobby and after that Brookshires before she had a fall in August of 2021 that left her unable to return to work. She stayed busy in her final years visiting with friends, writing letters, reading hundreds of books, and spending time with her family.

Pat loved to cook, and the more people she cooked for, the happier she was. It could be homemade rolls, cookies, cakes, or entire meals, it didn’t matter, she just loved being in the kitchen. Pat also had a great love for animals of all kinds and loved watching the birds and squirrels out her back window until the end. Her beloved dog Blaze will be happy to reunite with her again.

Her grandchildren and great- grandson held a very special place in her heart. She loved going to school plays, dance recitals, awards day, and ball games. In her later years after her first “retirement” she became a big sports fan and loved watching the Saints, LSU, and any team one of her grandchildren played on! She even came to the games with a pad and pen to keep her own score and keep “the blue” straight, and of course snuck in bags of homemade cookies for everyone to snack on! She created community everywhere she went.

Ms. Pat was a small but strong lady that touched the heart of everyone she met. She will never be forgotten and will always be loved and cherished as a mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend.

The Zaldivar family, Hamel family, all of her students that came through the Wesley Foundation at NLU during her time there, the Hawthorne family, her Overhead Door family, her Frances Tower family, and so many more bonus families were all loved by her so dearly.

She is survived by her sister, Delores Cox of Lexington, KY; her youngest daughter, Kathy Bryan and husband, Stacey of Eros, LA; grandchildren, Ryan Johnson (Monroe), Lindsie Johnson Hyde and husband, Chris (Ruston), Samantha Evans (Pineville), Tabitha Evans Merritt and husband, Mitchell (West Monroe), Payton Evans (Eros), Madison Bryan (Eros), and great- grandson, Vance Mallet (Ruston).

She is preceded in death by her grandparents who raised her as their own, Riley and Willie Mae Ward, her parents, Herman Dargavell and Louise Ward Dargavell, her sister, Beverly Ann Dargavell, her brother, Riley “Rusty” Dargavell, her daughter, Victoria “Vicki” Lynn Wilson Johnson; and her son, James “Jamie” Edwin Wilson II.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you donate to your local animal shelter in Pat’s name.

The family would also like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the amazing providers at Louisiana Hospice who made sure to keep Pat comfortable in her last year.