Patricia Pfaendtner

Patricia (Renders) Pfaendtner, age 67, of Macomb, Michigan passed away in the early hours of May 27, 2023 following an eleven-year battle with ovarian cancer. She had spent most of the previous day surrounded by her loud, supportive, loving family. Following her conception in Antwerp, Belgium, she and her parents Gustav and Cornelia Renders immigrated by ship to the United States where she was born in Detroit on February 22, 1956. Her brother John would soon follow in 1958. 

Patti spent her formative years in Clinton Township, eventually attending Oakland University where she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education. Following graduation, she spent several years as a pre-school teacher for Macomb County Head Start. After earning her first Master’s Degree from Wayne State University she moved to Brooklands Elementary School in Rochester Hills where she taught First Grade for the next seventeen years. Along the way she earned a second Master’s Degree from Saginaw Valley State University and spent the last five years of her teaching career as a Reading Interventionist, assisting lower elementary students with reading problems. She was offered an early retirement in 2010 which she gladly accepted. 

Patti met her husband Michael in 1974 when they both worked for The Johnson-Smith Company, a mail-order novelty toy company selling joy buzzers, whoopie cushions and fake dog poop, among many other things. They began dating in 1975 and married in 1979, forming a close, loving relationship that would last until her death in 2023. Together they raised two wonderful sons, Joel and Trevor who grew up to become loving husbands, amazing fathers and just all-around good people. 

Patti lived a life dedicated to service to others. In addition to all the lives she touched over the years as a teacher, she was quick to volunteer and head up committees at her school. She inspired a number of her former students to go into education, mentored new teachers when they came to work in her building, and for a time, she served as an adjunct professor at Rochester College teaching education classes to aspiring teachers. This service extended to the churches she attended over the years. While at St. Paul of Tarsus Catholic Church she served as a lector and an usher, and volunteered at the St. Dominic Soup Kitchen through the church’s outreach program. Later on, she sang in the Contemporary Choir as well as the Funeral Choir at St. Isidore Parish. For a number of elections, she also served as a poll worker. Patti had a strong commitment to charitable works. Every year she would select a number of charities and make donations in the name of each family member as part of their Christmas gifts. As the owner of a rescue dog, she had a soft spot in her heart for animals and was a regular contributor to the Humane Society and the ASPCA. They say, “Once a teacher, always a teacher” and this certainly applied to Patti. Following her ovarian cancer diagnosis in 2012, she became involved with the Michigan Ovarian Cancer Alliance, as well as the Survivors Teaching Students program through the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance. There, she joined other survivors as they gave presentations to medical and nursing students.

After her family, Patti’s greatest love was for her art. All her life she had wanted to be an artist, and following retirement she embraced it with a passion. Despite her cancer diagnosis, she refused to let her disease define her. Working prolifically from her art studio in the former master bedroom in her home, she created hundreds of works of art over the years, selling most of them at art fairs around the area, as she lived her dream to become a working artist. During this time, she forged close friendships with a number of other artists and relished being part of this group. Her commitment to service even extended to the art community, where she served as a judge for a number of years for the Funky Ferndale Art Fair. 

Patti loved her family fiercely and they all returned that love to her. She was a proud, doting grandmother who planned all kinds of activities for her grandchildren whenever they came over. She is survived by Michael, her husband of forty-three years, as well as sons Joel (Sara) and their two children Grace and Cory and Trevor (Elizabeth) and their two children Adrian and Genevieve. Other survivors include her loving brother John (Ruth) Renders and their sons Sean and Daniel (Kaitlyn). She also leaves behind numerous close friends and cousins whom she dearly loved. 

A memorial will be held Saturday, June 24, 2023 at the funeral home with visitation from two until eight. A service will begin at six. Her ashes will be interred the following Monday in a private ceremony at Resurrection Cemetery in Clinton Township. 

Per her wishes, a collection of her artwork will be displayed at the funeral home and guests are encouraged to take a piece or two home with them. Truth be told, the family is hoping not to have to bring anything back home with them at the end of the day. 

Donations may be made in her name either to the Michigan Ovarian Cancer Alliance www.mioca.org or Christ Child House www.christchildhouse.org. 

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