Patricia Reifsnyder, 87, longtime Germantown Friends teacher
Patricia P. Reifsnyder, 87, formerly of Philadelphia, a longtime teacher at Germantown Friends School, died Saturday, Sept. 24, of complications from Lewy body dementia at Foulkeways at Gwynedd.
Patricia P. Reifsnyder, 87, formerly of Philadelphia, a longtime teacher at Germantown Friends School, died Saturday, Sept. 24, of complications from Lewy body dementia at Foulkeways at Gwynedd.
Mrs. Reifsnyder's passion was teaching. She joined the faculty at Germantown Friends in 1961 and stayed there for 35 years. She taught ancient European history, political science, and American history.
So respected was Mrs. Reifsnyder that in 2009, the Class of 1967 established a fund in her name for the school's history department.
"As a teacher, Pat was simultaneously whimsical and firm, a font of knowledge who remembered every student she ever taught - their strengths and struggles," her family said in a tribute.
Born to David Daniel and Anna Katharine MacKissic Pugh, Mrs. Reifsnyder was reared in Philadelphia and, for a time, Venezuela. She graduated from Wilson College in 1950 and earned a master's degree in history from the University of Pennsylvania in 1951.
That same year, she married Robert Navarre Reifsnyder, whom she had met long before at grammar school in Caracas. The couple settled in Mount Airy and had three children.
The family spent summers in Nova Scotia, where Mrs. Reifsnyder led her children and "anyone else who would follow" on canoe, hiking, and camping adventures.
In 1954, she began her teaching career at Friends' Central School in Bala Cynwyd before leaving to join the teaching staff at Germantown Friends.
Mrs. Reifsnyder became a Quaker in the mid-1950s. A member of Germantown Monthly Meeting, she was clerk, or informal leader, of the meeting from 1985 to 1991, and a member of the marriage and funeral committees.
Mrs. Reifsnyder enjoyed politics. She was elected a Democratic committeewoman in May 1966 and was leader of Philadelphia's Ninth Ward from 1987 to 1994.
In 1980, she was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention, and was appointed an elector in 1992. She told her family that she proudly cast her electoral vote for Bill Clinton.
Mrs. Reifsnyder read "everything from serious history to murder mysteries to cereal boxes," her family said.
She was especially interested in feminist and Quaker studies. A skilled genealogist, she scoured historical records in Philadelphia, Chester County, and Cape May for traces of her ancestors.
She liked to travel, leading groups of students to Greece, Rome, and on tours of Washington. She also volunteered to teach English in Slovakia.
"To every endeavor, Pat brought her irrepressible spirit, enthusiasm, curiosity, and infectious laughter," her family said.
In 2004, Mrs. Reifsnyder and her husband retired to Foulkeways at Gwynedd, where they stayed active in politics and reading groups.
In addition to her husband, she is survived by sons David B. and Peter C.; a daughter, Abigail W.; seven grandchildren; a half-brother; a niece; and a nephew.
A memorial meeting for worship will be at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 26, at Germantown Friends Meeting, 47 W. Coulter St. Burial is private.
Donations may be made to the Germantown Friends School, Community Scholars Program, 31 W. Coulter St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19144.
610-313-8102