PATRICIA J. DELUCA (STEVENSON)

     Patricia J. (Stevenson) DeLuca, 83, formerly of Rutland, passed away peacefully on Friday, December 9, 2016 with her loving family by her side at Saint Vincent Hospital after a long illness.

Pat was born in Ware on May 24, 1933, a daughter of Harry and Julia (Daley) Stevenson and lived her formative years in Barre. She graduated from Barre High School in 1951 and Saint Vincent Hospital School of Nursing in 1954. While attending nursing school in Worcester, Pat was introduced to a handsome young man from Rutland by the name of Peter DeLuca – the rest was history. They married on May 28, 1955 at St. Joseph-a-Becket Church in South Barre. After spending the following year building a new home, they moved to Rutland where they resided for the following 40 years while raising their three sons.

As a registered nurse, Pat amazingly balanced her family life and chosen profession which spanned over 52 years. She began her career as a registered nurse in the 1950’s at the former Holden District Hospital where she worked until its closing in 1990. She spent the next 10 years working at UMass Memorial Hospital on Belmont Street as a nursing supervisor, retiring in 2007 from The Meadows of Leicester. Pat’s love and compassion, sense of humor, strong will, and dedication to the nursing profession will live on in the hearts of all those who knew and loved her. It has been said that “When you’re a nurse you know that every day you will touch a life or a life will touch you.” Pat has left an indelible mark of heartfelt compassion on the lives that she touched throughout the years.

Pat’s life was centered on family and faith. She enjoyed vacationing with her family at their summer home in West Yarmouth, dining out, and shopping with her daughters-in-law. Her family remembers her as ambitious, nurturing, and delightfully humorous. Pat’s pragmatic nature, along with her strong determination, was a constant inspiration for her sons to become “the best versions of themselves.” Her memberships included St. George Church in Worcester, Saint Vincent Hospital School of Nursing Alumni Association, and was a former long-time member of St. Patrick’s Church in Rutland.

She leaves her beloved husband of 61 years, Peter M. DeLuca; her three sons, Michael C. DeLuca and his wife, Janet of Holden, Peter DeLuca and his wife, Monica of Eugene, Oregon, and Thomas W. DeLuca and his wife, Sherrie of Little Rock, Arkansas; a sister, Sheila Hudson and her husband, Michael of Sterling; nine grandchildren, Katheryn Sacco, Amy DeLuca, Elizabeth Waldo, Christina Foss, and Bradford, Peter, Marisa, Blake, and David DeLuca; three great-grandchildren, Emma, Addison and Avery; nephews and nieces. Besides her parents, Pat is predeceased by two sisters, Carol Mahoney and Anne Mangano.

Relatives and friends are invited to visit with Pat’s family from 4 to 7 pm on Tuesday, December 13, at the Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main St., Holden. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 am on Wednesday, December 14, at St. Patrick’s Church, 258 Main St., Rutland. Interment will follow at Worcester County Memorial Park in Paxton.