Patricia Heins

Eau Claire, Wisconsin - Patricia Marie Heins, age 82, of Eau Claire, Wisconsin passed away on July 4, 2017 at her home after a long and valiant battle against lymphoma. She was born April 23, 1935 in Marshfield, Wisconsin, the daughter of Elizabeth Marguretta Spearbecker and Andrew Charles (Andreas Karl) Pscheidt. Patricia married William Arthur Heins on August 10, 1958 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

Pat was a kind and generous woman who always pushed boundaries and loved to wear hats. She had a passion for adventure, pursued with a vengeance in the last years of her life: cruising in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico; attending an Indian wedding in Mississippi; going on safari in South Africa; taking her first snowmobile ride in Wisconsin; visiting friends and relatives in Texas and Maryland; and finally soaking in the hot springs of Chena, Alaska just 2 weeks before her passing. For a member of her generation, she was remarkably conversant with social media; looking through the contact list on her cell phone, she may have had more adventures than we imagined...

Pat received her primary and secondary education in the public schools of Eau Claire. She was an active member of the Eau Claire High School class of 1953. She gave the salutation at graduation after grudgingly conceding the valediction to Bill Heins. She attended the University of Wisconsin in both Eau Claire and Madison, graduating with a degree in speech pathology in 1955. She also earned a master's degree in speech pathology and audiology from the University of Akron in 1979. Pat worked as a speech therapist in public schools in Wisconsin, Ohio, Iowa, Connecticut, Michigan and Minnesota, but the bulk of her professional career was spent at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire. Pat worked full time at Sacred Heart from 1980 to 1997, but even after retirement carried a substantial caseload as a per diem therapist until cancer forced her from active duty in 2015.

Pat loved a bargain. She was a fabled customer at thrift stores and garage sales in Eau Claire and the region. Even when travelling the world, she always knew exactly where to find the Flohmarkt, tienda de economías, or turkáló. Her quarry was vintage clothing, especially hats, but above all: buttons. Pat was a long-time member of the Eau Claire Button Club, with a passion for the button-adorned clothes of the Cockney Pearlies from the East End of London. Like the Pearly Kings and Queens, she was actively engaged in charity and social justice, sometimes appearing as "Buttons the Clown". She gave her time to the Eau Claire Regional Arts Council and the Ragtime Festival, not the least as a chance to wear great vintage clothing.

Pat is survived by three children, fourteen grandchildren, and many great grandchildren: Jennifer Aranda, of Moorhead, MN and her children John and Granville; Paul (Carron) Heins, of Lakeland, FL, and children Jessica, Demetrius, Patricia, Nadine, Nichole, Blade, Devon, Brett, and Tylee; and William (Judit German-Heins) of Houston, TX, and children Eszter, Lilla, and Sara. Pat was preceded in death by her parents, her brother Gordon, her husband, and grandson Anatone Heins.

Funeral services will be held Wednesday, July 12, 2017 at First Congregational Church, 310 Broadway St, Eau Claire, WI: visitation will be at 10, followed by the service at 11, and lunch at 12. A green burial has already taken place, at Natural Path Sanctuary, Verona, WI.

In lieu of flowers, Pat would have appreciated donations to the charities she supported, including: Wisconsin Public Radio, Eau Claire Regional Arts Council, Chippewa Valley Museum, and the Smithsonian Native-American and African-American museums.

Cress Funeral & Cremation Service
3325 E. Washington Ave., Madison
608-249-6666