Patricia "Pat" Potter Williams, formerly of Hinsdale, passed away peacefully Feb. 15, 2024, at her home in Asheville, N.C., with her husband and her children around her, after a year-long battle with cancer. She faced her illness, and its final outcome, with strength, courage and grace.
Pat was always interested in learning something new and just as interested in passing that knowledge on to help someone else. She enjoyed playing pickleball and loved hiking, cycling on bike trails and line dancing. She made friends whatever she did and wherever she went. Among many others, she had a close group of friends who dated back to high school and even kindergarten.
Pat was born in Woodville, Texas, to Stuart L. Potter and Olive A. Potter, but grew up in Edwardsville. After earning her degree in business at the University of Illinois, Pat moved to Washington, D.C., where she worked for three years for the Federal Home Loan Bank Board. In DC, she met the man who would become her husband, Douglas Williams. Pat and Doug were married in South Bend, Ind., on Dec. 27, 1973. In 1974, they moved to Hyde Park to attend the University of Chicago, where she earned her MBA. After passing the CPA exam, she worked for Haskins & Sells, an international accounting firm, first in auditing and then in small business consulting. She left H&S to teach accounting at Loyola University in Chicago, then ran her own small business for a few years.
Pat and Doug moved to Hinsdale in 1981 before the birth of their three children. As the children grew up, Pat was actively involved in their schooling through PTAs and serving on the local school board. She encouraged and facilitated their participation in numerous sports and extracurricular activities, nurturing their talents, coaching their teams and rarely, if ever, missing a game or performance.
Pat also was active in local organizations, played tennis at a competitive level and also enjoyed golf in the summer and platform tennis in the winter. She handled all of the family finances and investments, to which her husband credits his ability to retire early.
In 2005, Pat and Doug retired to Asheville. They loved the freedom to travel in their retirement, often to visit family and friends. They especially loved Canada and eventually visited every province. They also loved to visit National Parks.
Pat was devoted to her family and doted on her grandchildren, so the most important annual trip was to gather everyone in a big house somewhere for the week of Thanksgiving. Pat was never happier than when all of her children and their spouses and grandchildren were together.
Pat is survived by her husband of 50 years, Doug Williams; her children, Dan (Ashley Westrich) Williams, Katherine Williams (Justin) Mills and Philip (Lawrence Cuevas) Williams; and her grandchildren, Theo, Elliot, Faye, Nolan, Brynn and Lanai.
Pat's sister, Susan Potter, survived her, but passed away on March 6, 2024.
A celebration of Pat's life will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. Sunday, May 26, at the North Carolina Arboretum, 100 Frederick Law Olmsted Way, Asheville.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made online to the North Carolina Arboretum at http://www.ncarboretum.org, the Asheville Botanical Gardens at http://www.ashevillebotanicalgardens.org or the Carolina Memorial Sanctuary at http://www.carolinamemorialsanctuary.org.
