Patricia Duffy

Patricia M. Duffy (nee Nealis), age 88 of Wayne, died peacefully at home on Wednesday, December 1, 2021. She has lived in Wayne for sixty-one years.

Patricia grew up in Jersey City, NJ and graduated Valedictorian from St. Anne Catholic High School in 1951. Soon thereafter, she began working at Colgate-Palmolive in New York City. She later worked for American Cyanamid in Wayne in their treasury. She retired after twenty-seven years there as Supervisor of the treasury department of American Cyanamid.

In the early 1950’s, it was common for local churches to host social dances for young people to meet. It was at one of these dances that she met Eugene Duffy. They hit it off quickly and Eugene soon proposed. They were married in April of 1956 at St. Anne Catholic Church, Jersey City, and honeymooned to Niagara Falls. They lived briefly in Jersey City before moving to Wayne in 1961. Compared to Jersey City, Wayne may as well have been the boondocks, but Patricia and Eugene quickly fell in love with their new home and settled right in. They quickly made friends with all the other new families on their street, and these relationships have endured for decades. Their neighbors became like family, and all the kids grew up together as well. Patricia loved the sense of community, she loved Wayne, and she earned her status as the “Unofficial Mayor” of Wayne! She could be found walking daily, no matter what the weather, all around the area. Of course, her children found it moderately distressing that she also had the ability to trip over just about every uneven piece of sidewalk while out on her walks. Fortunately, she never injured herself too badly.

Patricia was very involved around town. She was a fixture at the YMHA Jazzercise classes for untold years, arriving extra early in order to secure a front row spot! She also volunteered as a Eucharistic Minister at the Preakness Healthcare Center for many years. She was lucky to have been able to travel throughout Europe, visiting Ireland, Italy, Germany, France, Austria, Lichtenstein, and many more countries. She also enjoyed visiting New York City as often as possible. Broadway shows and the occasional dinner at Carmines (uptown, of course). Above all else, though, she loved the Jersey Shore and being near the ocean. Her children recall what a great cook she was, and fortunately she passed down her delicious gravy recipe to them!  Patricia loved her grandson dearly and although he grew up in Tucson, Arizona, she would often go and spend weeks at a time there with him. Her family was always her priority, and she loved them all dearly. They each have a lifetime of happy memories to cherish for years to come.

Patricia is survived by her three children; Mark Duffy and his wife Anna of Prospect Park, Brian Duffy of Wayne, and Patricia Valenzuela and her husband Al of Tucson, Arizona, and one grandson; Ryan Valenzuela of Tucson, Arizona. She was predeceased by her husband, Eugene, in 1999.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Patricia's memory would be greatly appreciated.  Please consider St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.