Patricia Ann Wilund

Patricia Wilund

Pat Wilund was both exceptionally creative and intensely competitive. She was an accomplished watercolorist, beautifully portraying the wildlife and landscape of low country South Carolina. She was a talented seamstress whose command of five completely different sewing machines continuously amazed her family, friends, neighbors and customers. She was an interior designer who helped build several design companies. And she was a fierce competitor at cribbage, the card game Hand and Foot, gardening, and in just about every other aspect of life.

But more than anything else, Pat was a devoted spouse to Robert “Bob” Wilund, her high school sweetheart and husband for over 65 years until Bob’s passing in 2023.

Patricia Pautsch was born in Red Wing, Minnesota on October 17, 1939. Soon afterward her family relocated to Waterloo, Wisconsin, a town for which she maintained a lifelong affection. She and Bob met there when he moved to town. He was in sixth grade; she was in fifth grade. Their first actual date occurred in high school, and they were instantly inseparable.

The couple were married December 28, 1957, and moved to Ames, Iowa. Bob attended architecture school at Iowa State and Pat worked at the university. They lived in a trailer that was eight feet wide and twenty six feet long… including the trailer hitch. Their first son, Larry, was born during their time in Iowa.

After graduation from college, the couple moved to Sioux City, Iowa, for Bob’s first job. Daughter Laura would be born there. Bob’s next career move took them to Milwaukee where son Kenny was born. They then moved to Atlanta. Bob was the managing architect for the new Atlanta Airport; Pat worked as a teaching assistant at the elementary school attended by Larry and Laura. She also made dresses for her daughter, costumes for local cheerleaders, and, in one special case, the full-spectrum sequined performance outfits for an Olympic figure skating hopeful.

When the family moved to Myrtle Beach for Bob’s work on the new airport there, Pat went to work for a lumber company where she led the expansion of the business into the sale of drapery, carpet, and vinyl floor covering. She would end up doing interior design packages for condominium developments across the country, and she even learned to operate a forklift for moving large rolls of carpet.

But her primary passion during that time was helping Bob raise their kids. Myrtle Beach was an especially memorable time for her family, as they lived in a dream home – designed by Bob -- in the woods on the intercoastal waterway, near a tennis club that helped shape their kid’s lives. They also enjoyed many memorable vacations during this time to Eleuthera, a secluded island in the Bahamas. They spent many weeks together on this island, spearfishing, cooking and eating amazing seafood, and enjoying their lives together.

Bob’s next move took them to Raleigh for work on its airport. Pat went to work for what was then a small mattress store. Pat quickly became their top salesperson and, when the retailer expanded into a full-blown furniture store, Pat became store manager.

The couple retired to Sun City in Bluffton, South Carolina, in 2005. After twenty happy years in Sun City surrounded by friends, fellow artists, and fellow cribbage players, Pat decided to relocate to Atlanta to be closer to her daughter and to begin a new phase of life in the city that she had enjoyed decades earlier. But it was not to be. Just ten days after moving she was diagnosed with Leukemia. She passed away three weeks later on May 29th at age 85. But in those three precious weeks, all of her children, in-laws, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren were able to spend quality time with her.

Pat is survived by her three children, their spouses, five grandchildren, two great grandchildren, and her dog Jaxon. In lieu of flowers, please make a contribution to PAWS Atlanta (pawsatlanta.org) or Winship Cancer Institute (winshipcancer.emory.edu).