Patricia Hine

Patricia M. Hine, 92, passed away peacefully on January 28, 2022, in Memory Care / Hospice at The Village at Skyline Pines in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Patricia—known to friends and family as “Pat” or “Auntie Pat” or “Patto”—was born on July 6, 1929 in Lancaster, Ohio to Herbert and Marjorie (Evans) Hine. There, she joined her brother, Jim, who was 15 months older.

A graduate of North High School in Columbus, Pat lived for awhile in Cleveland before attending and graduating The Ohio State University, where she served as the School of Nursing Junior and Senior Class President and received her RN and Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing in 1951. She was very grateful to her brother, Jim, who selflessly left The Ohio State University—where he had excelled in the OSU Band and Choir—in order to stretch the family’s modest means and allow his younger sister the opportunity to attend college.

After spending some time working in the Operating Room of The Ohio State University Hospital, Pat ventured away from her home roots to work as a nurse in Florida and California, before heading to Denver, CO where she was employed for a few years as a Surgical Nurse at Presbyterian Hospital. In 1963 she joined the staff of The Children’s Hospital of Denver, where she worked for 29 years before retiring on July 24, 1992. While there, Pat served as an Operating Room Surgical Nurse, as Head Nurse of the Operating Room and Post-Anesthesia Care Unit, and as Nursing Director of Day Surgery & Admit One, Discharge Too. She was a devoted nurse and manager, and she loved being in the “Kid Business.” She was so proud of her associates and the excellent care provided at The Children’s Hospital of Denver!

For several years, Pat proudly served her country as a Captain in the Colorado Army National Guard.

Pat loved her family and many friends. She was proud of the Hine Family’s historical tie to Cripple Creek, CO and was always delighted to participate in family get-togethers, often helping plan reunions across the country. She enjoyed keeping in touch and cherished hearing from her aunts, uncles, and cousins through the years. She had a generous spirit and was often there to celebrate accomplishments and share in the special occasions of those she loved.

Pat loved old movies—and delighted in music of all genre.  A Lifetime Member of the OSU Alumni Association, she was an avid Buckeye football fan, always hoping the TV network would show the OSU Band dotting the “i” in the script Ohio! A longtime supporter of the efforts of the World Wildlife Fund, she loved animals of all kinds and enjoyed taking her dog—whether Dakota Rose, or Peaches, or one of her earlier companions—for a daily walk in the park. Following her retirement, she kept fit at the South Suburban Recreation Facility in Littleton, CO and volunteered as a docent at the Denver Zoo for several years. Pat enjoyed reading, playing golf, and even had a small sail boat for a while. Fiercely independent, she knew which political party she would staunchly support (and it was a straight ticket to be sure!), insisted on doing the dishes herself, meticulously kept her affairs in order (as long as she was able), and—at least for many years—owned only cars equipped with standard transmission and no air conditioner.

Pat loved travel and adventure—and collected travel brochures from all over the world. She was the “go-to” person to accompany kids on fast merry-go-rounds, roller coasters, and other daring rides. Pat loved Colorado, and enjoyed skiing and occasionally driving up to Mt. Evans in her earlier years, just to take in the majesty of the Rockies. Besides taking many short and long domestic road trips with friend Pat through the years, she was thrilled to experience Europe, especially Paris, watching the Harvest Moon rise over the Seine with cousin Holly. But many of Pat’s travels were solo adventures—Windjammer sailing in the Caribbean, blimp flying over San Francisco, parasailing in Mexico, safari ballooning over Kenya, and exploring Glacier Bay in Alaska. She would go here and there for a chance to fly in a small plane or glider, and she was really excited with her front seat flight in a Stearman biplane!

And, she loved her home in Centennial, which she had built in 1973 and then occupied for 46 years. She knew and liked her neighbors, and they liked her. But when living alone was no longer reasonable, Pat made the decision to move to Pine Hills Retirement Community in Hot Springs, SD in the summer of 2019—at first living as an Independent Resident and then transitioning into Assisted Living. As Memory Care became necessary, Pat moved to Rapid City in September of 2021—and Hospice was added in October.

Pat is survived by cousins Holly (Pete) Cruser, Mancos, CO; Tim (Dottie) Hine, Lehighton, PA; John (Gayle) Hine, Bloomsburg, PA; June Baumgartner, Spring Hill, FL; Greg (Summer) Frey, Sarasota, FL; Gary Hanes, Denver, CO; and Jeri (Jim) Keller, Charlotte, NC; and special friends Pat and Garry Strauser, Hot Springs, SD (and the Strauser and VanDevender children and grandchildren); and Brenda Hale, Denver, CO; as well as many other good friends, former colleagues, and neighbors.

She is predeceased by her parents, Herbert and Marjorie Hine; her brother, James Hine; many special aunts and uncles; and special friends Christy Berner and Carlyne White.

Pat was blessed to receive warm, compassionate care when she could no longer provide for her own needs. Many thanks go to the caregivers, providers, and other staff at Pine Hills Assisted Living and The Village at Skyline Pines, as well as to Susan and staff at Monument Health Home+ Hospice.

Arrangements have been placed in the care of Blase-Strauser Memorial Chapel, 620 10th Street, Gothenburg, NE, where private visitation was held Sunday, February 6, 2022. Cremation is to follow, and a celebration of life is planned at a later date in Denver, CO, with inurnment to follow in Parkhurst Cemetery, Clyde, OH.