H. Mcdonald Patricia

Patricia H. McDonald, age 88, of Seneca Falls NY died peacefully surrounded by her large, loving family at her home on April 19, 2016 after a brief illness.

Friends may call at the Covert Funeral Home at 7199 S. Main Street, Ovid, NY on Monday, April 25th from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Patricia❜s name to the Romulus Foundation for Educational Opportunities (RFEO), 8705 Main Street, Romulus, NY 14541.

Pat was an extraordinary woman - beautiful, kind, generous, successful, accomplished, creative, athletic, and inspirational to her family and leagues of friends.

Pat was passionate about all aspects of her life, particularly theater, reading, her real estate business, ‶wellness″, her ‶5-finger″ shoes that led to numerous 5K races when she was well into her 80❜s, travel, blue water, and, of course, her hot tub! At the age of 87, she took a course in standup comedy at Auburn Community College and performed at private parties and area clubs. Pat also had a particular fondness for tennis. She played often, and frequented the U.S. Open for many years.

Pat grew up in Phoenixville, PA and loved playing the trumpet. Pat earned a Nursing degree from Adelphi University, where she met her husband Jim and began the adventure of raising 8 children. The family lived on Long Island, with a brief stint in Clarks Summit, near Scranton, PA. During this period, Pat was a model and performed as a television weather personality in Scranton. The family moved back to Freeport, Long Island, and Pat worked as a private duty nurse on the night shift and cared for her growing family during the day.

In 1968, the family moved to Romulus, NY, where husband Jim was the principal of Romulus Central School. Their mutual love of the theater inspired them to bring the Broadway stage to Romulus - Pat sewed the costumes and Jim directed numerous shows on the RCS stage.

Pat earned her Master of Education degree from Columbia University, and was instrumental in the development of the nursing program at FLCC. She also taught nursing at Keuka College.

In 1977, Pat decided to change careers and began investing in real estate. Through the years, she has helped hundreds of families to realize the American Dream of homeownership through her innovative rent-to-own program. She was a long-standing member and presenter at two local real estate investment groups: REICNY in Syracuse, and FFREIA in Rochester - teaching & presenting her creative ‶win-win″ philosophies. She has mentored numerous young investors to help them achieve financial freedom, and produced her own book and tape package called ‶The Golden Rule of Investing″. This generosity has led to close and enduring friendships over the past several decades. Three of her children: Jim, Mary and Casey, are full-time real estate investors.

Pat❜s love of theater prompted her to grace the stage in Seneca Falls and Geneva. She often traveled to NYC to see Broadway shows, and has for many years been a season ticket holder and supporter of the Merry-Go-Round theater in Auburn. She and Jim inspired each of their children to have a connection to the creative & performing arts, and their combined gene pool created a long and continuing legacy of performers. Daughter Kate was a singer and guitar player, son Jim worked on Hollywood movie sets, Peter was in numerous bluegrass and country bands, Chris is a renowned television/movie/Broadway actor, Mary was an opera singer and continues to perform locally, Casey plays in a variety of jazz groups, and Daniel was a Tony-nominated actor on Broadway. The next generation boasts actors Jefferson and Rosie, film producer/ director Hannah, professional singer Riley, singer/songwriter Rebecca Colleen, and guitarist Jason Borisoff. The legacy continues.

Pat also loved to travel. She and Jim went to London, France, Holland, Egypt, Israel, Greece, Italy, and all over the United States, Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean. Together they discovered beautiful Cabo San Lucas, in the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula, and Cabo became Pat❜s favorite ‶home away from home″ every February for the past 22 years. Jim & Pat took their grown children on a trip to Ireland in 1996. Pat and daughter Mary had more adventurous journeys, including an African safari, China, the Galapagos Islands, and Machu Picchu. She loved ‶blue water″ and circled the globe to find lovely beaches and jump in the clear blue deep.

Pat was a founding member of the Romulus Foundation for Educational Opportunities, and a long-time member of the Twentieth Century Club in Ovid, NY.

She is survived by sons Jim and Casey (Jayne) of Romulus and Christopher (Lupe) of Hollywood, and daughter Mary (George Moore) of Seneca Falls. A particular source of pride and joy for Pat are her 27 grandchildren: Joshua (Samantha) and Jason Borisoff, Montana, Paige, Tally, Zoe, Jefferson, Michael, Patrick, Rebecca, Joseph, Matthew, Philip, Paul, James, Jackson Riley, Hannah, Rosie, Ava, Geordie and Abby Moore, Joanna, Nicholas, Brendan, Emily, Fosco and Ondina. She is pre-deceased by her husband Dr. James R. McDonald, former principal of Romulus Central School, her daughter Kate (David Borisoff), and her sons Geoffrey, Daniel (Mujah Maraini-Melehi), and Peter (Shannon). Pat is also survived by her cousins Harvey Jester and Patricia Reynolds.

As we gather to celebrate Pat❜s life, we ask that you honor her memory by incorporating her life philosophies into your own: Love One Another, Love your life, and be PHENOMENAL, darlings!