Patricia Joanne Armstrong, 70, of Newtown died February 24 at home. She succumbed to leukemia. She was born in Ogdensburg, N.Y., May 27, 1943, the daughter of Anna and Alfred Wild.

She attended Ogdensburg Free Academy where she was a cheerleader, graduating in 1961. Following in her mother’s footsteps, she went on to earn her degree in nursing, graduating from St Luke’s School of Nursing in New York City in 1964. Her love of babies drew her to the delivery room where she worked for several years at Riverside Hospital in Boonton, N.J. During these years, she purchased her first home in Milton, N.J., and met her future husband.

On July 6, 1974, she wed William Richardson Armstrong. Mrs Armstrong retired from full-time nursing one year later with the birth of her first child. The family of four relocated to Newtown in 1981, where she spent the next 33 years surrounded by wonderful neighborhood friends, raising her children, and tending her extensive gardens of daylilies, peonies, and hostas. As her children grew older, Mrs Armstrong worked in the Newtown public schools as a substitute school nurse.

She was happiest spoiling her grandchildren, working in her garden, or out to lunch with friends. A fan of quilting, she made and collected many quilts over the years. She was also an avid reader and relished a good murder mystery.  Mrs Armstrong loved shopping for a good bargain, especially when it was for the grandkids. Her summers were spent on the St Lawrence River or near the beach in Myrtle Beach, S.C., visiting with friends and family and enjoying the sunrises and sunsets.

Family and friends will remember well her wonderful comfort food dishes. Recipes for chocolate cake smothered in melted Hershey bars and barbecued beef brisket were readily shared with those who enjoyed her cooking. She had a great love of food and cooking, especially when it involved chocolate or peanut butter, or both.  She harbored a lifelong aversion to vegetables, which she unfortunately passed on to her grandchildren.

Her regrets were few, which is boastful of a rich life. Mrs Armstrong would have liked to have had just one pet that tolerated travel in the car without stomach upset. Furthermore, her 15-year quest to remodel her kitchen met with frequent derailment, much to her consternation. 

She was a friend one could depend on for comfort, support, unsolicited advice, and a good laugh. She was a loving and thoughtful friend, wife, and mother.

Her husband William R. Armstrong and son William Armstrong of Newtown; her daughter Melanie Acosta of Ashton, Md.; and three grandchildren, Isabella, Samuel, and Abigail Acosta, survive Mrs Armstrong.  Her parents and her brother, Peter Wild, predeceased her.

The family will receive visitors from 3 to 6 pm, Thursday, February 27, at the Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main Street, in Newtown. Services will be held at the funeral home, at 11 am, Friday, February 28.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations in Mrs Armstrong’s name be made to the Praxair Cancer Center, 24 Hospital Avenue, Danbury CT 06810.