Patricia "Pat" W. Matchette

Patricia Witherell Matchette Age 96, passed away on November 17, 2021, after a brief illness. Pat was Born in Shoreham, Vermont, on March 17, 1925. She was the third of Harry and Ethel (Belden) Witherell’s five children. Her husband of 57 years, Robert Hutchins Matchette, preceded her in death as did her three brothers, Ralph, Raymond, and John Witherell. Pat’s exceptional musical talents were evident at an early age. She began piano lessons at 5 and at 15 became organist at a Baptist church. She graduated from Spaulding High School, Rochester, New Hampshire, in 1942, and attended the University of New Hampshire before transferring to Westminster Choir College, Princeton, New Jersey. As a member of the Westminster Symphonic Choir, Pat performed many choral-orchestral works with the New York Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Orchestra. In spring 1946, Pat was selected to be a member of the world-famous Westminster Choir. That summer, the choir performed Paul Green’s outdoor drama, The Lost Colony, in Manteo, North Carolina. During the school year, Westminster Choir toured for ten weeks, performing in venues across the U.S. and Cuba. Pat moved to Cincinnati in 1948 to teach music at Hillsdale School. In 1950, she married Robert Matchette, uniting two of New England’s oldest families. Pat and Bob resided in Mariemont where they raised their two children, Ric and Cynthia. In the 1970s, Pat helped create several musicals for the high school PTA involving parents, teachers, and students. In 1972, Pat accepted the organist-choir director position at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Terrace Park, retiring 24 years later. That same year, she also became director of the Junior League Choral Group and for 47 years led the ensemble’s musical performances at nursing homes and retirement facilities. Pat was twice nominated for Cincinnati Enquirer’s Woman of the Year. In 2011, she received the Alumni Merit Award from Westminster Choir College. To honor her service to schools, churches, and volunteer musical organizations in Cincinnati, Mayor Mark Mallory declared May 27, 2012, Pat Matchette Day. She is survived by her son, Eric Stowell Matchette, her daughter, Cynthia Webster Matchette, her granddaughter, Lydia Hynson (Gabriel) Park, her sister, Jane Witherell Rowell, and 14 nieces and nephews. A memorial service will take place at 2 p.m. on April 23, 2022, at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 100 Miami Ave., Terrace Park, Ohio. Memorials may be made to the music ministry at St. Thomas Church.