Patricia Lynn (Wagner) Ward

SEVEN VALLEYS- Patricia Lynn (Wagner) Ward died Friday, July 17 at York Hospital after an extended illness. She was born in Baltimore in 1938, the daughter of Hugh and Rebecca Wagner, and grew up on Ridgewood Road in Roland Park with her brothers Hugh Jr., Richard and Robert. As a child she played violin and piano, and rode dressage. She graduated from Notre Dame Preparatory School in 1956 and then attended Colby College in New Hampshire. In 1955, she met Compton Eugene (Gene) Ward, a midshipmen at the Naval Academy, and married him in 1958. Lynn and Gene raised five children as they traveled to posts around the country and overseas during his 30-year Navy career. Among Lynn's favorite places to live were Stuttgart, West Germany; San Diego, California; and Honolulu, Hawaii. While raising her family Lynn worked various jobs, including stints as a bank teller, a county agent, and an assistant manager at Federal Express. One of her proudest professional accomplishments was founding and directing the Rainbow Hale Daycare Center in Honolulu, whose mission was to help young military wives care for their children while their husbands were at sea. A big sports fan, Lynn especially loved the Baltimore Orioles, horse racing, college football and March Madness. She also enjoyed watching ‘Law and Order' and ‘Antiques Roadshow', and was known to spin a few yarns while sipping Pinot Grigio by the fireside. In 1998, Lynn and Gene moved to the countryside near York, Pennsylvania, where she cared full-time for her adult daughter Laura, who fought a lifelong battle with kidney disease and passed away in 2005. Lynn is survived by Captain C. E. Ward, USN (ret.), her husband of 50 years; sons Michael, David and Robert; daughter Mary; brother Robert; and her faithful yellow Labrador, Pudge. A viewing will be held at Heffner Funeral Chapel & Crematory, Inc., 1551 Kenneth Rd., York, Pa 17408 on Monday July 20 from 7-9 p.m. A service will be held Tuesday, July 21 at 11 a.m. at SS Phillip and James Catholic Church, 2801 N. Charles St. in Baltimore, the church where Lynn was baptized and also married. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made (earmarked for research) to the Transverse Myelitis Association at http://www.myelitis.org/