Birth Sept. 10, 1940Barre, VTDeath Nov. 14, 2024St. Albans, VTDetails of servicePatricia Ann (Perry) Carey was born Sept. 10, 1940 to Margaret (Black) and Arthur Perry in Barre, Vermont. After graduating Spaulding High School, she chose to pursue a nursing degree in Boston at the Peter Bent Brigham School of Nursing at Boston University.Once she had earned her nursing degree in 1961, she and a friend drove a black Ford Falcon across the country with dreams of becoming a singer-songwriter. After arriving in Los Angeles, she headed to the beach to look for guitar lessons. She met her husband Todd that day and they were married less than a month later. Together they traveled to Vermont, Florida, and Arizona, settling back in Vermont in 1984.Continuing with her career in hospitality, she settled in Stowe, working at several area businesses over the years.  When she lost her husband in 1997, she returned to the field of nursing, necessitating a return to school to complete a nursing refresher course.  This would be the beginning of the next chapter of her life that included almost 20 years spent working for the Vermont State Psychiatric facility, retiring at the age of 74.She found love again in her life through what started as friendship during her time spent as volunteer Ski Patrol and the Stowe Rescue Squad and blossomed into romance on Lake Champlain with Ed Hackett. With a shared love of adventure, they spent many hours on antique sailboats and her beloved Naulahka, cruising Lake Champlain and beyond.They were happiest during long stretches of good weather and company, entertaining either on the boat or at camp overlooking St Albans Bay. Winters found them back in Stowe with Ed on the mountain every day. He became her devoted caregiver toward the end of her life and supported her ability to live independently, her greatest wish.  Her many friends and neighbors at camp, along with Ed’s family, provided a constant supply of assistance and companionship over the years that brought great joy.If you knew her then most likely she bought you a meal or a beverage at some point. She would refuse to let anyone pay a bill at a restaurant.  And if you ever worked alongside her then you know what a hard worker she was — passed down from her Scottish granite worker heritage.She was known for her creativity — sewing, gardening — and encouraged others in the pursuit of their crafts. She was an avid reader and faithful NY Times crossword puzzle solver.She was gifted five beautiful, talented, and intelligent children — Dawn, Heather, Will, Aviva and Nicole, along with 8 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren.  She leaves behind her 3 sisters —Tooky, Nancy and Ellen and their partners: Mack, Jimmy and Shaban, nieces Megan and Katie, Jennifer and Melissa, Leila and nephew Alex, along with grand nephews and a grandniece. She was predeceased by her husband and son. She passed peacefully on November 14, 2024.Read the story on VTDigger here: Patricia Ann (Perry) Carey.