We are celebrating the extraordinary life of a beloved member of the Gettysburg community Pat Crowner. She was named Betty Jo when she was born on November 23, 1940 to Hazel Elizabeth (Tucker) and Thomas Joseph “Joe” Flamm in Springfield, Illinois. She was not fond of her given name and as a young girl changed her name to Pat, a shortened version of the nickname “Patches.”
As a precocious only child of older parents, she loved escaping to her Aunt Helen’s farm where she rode ponies and even a cow. Pat excelled at school where she had many close friends and was a member of the Springfield High School honor society. She graduated from the University of Illinois-Champaign-Urbana as a Phi Beta Kappa member with Highest Distinction.
Her life changed during a German-speaking summer camp in Portland, Oregon where she met and fell in love with David Crowner of Bell, a suburb of Los Angeles, California. They married right after college on August 17, 1962 before moving to New Brunswick, NJ where Pat taught Latin at Thomas Jefferson Junior High. During that time she had her first son, Michael, on July 9, 1963. Pat and Dave moved to Oneonta, NY where Karen was born on May 31, 1965. The family moved to Gettysburg in 1967 when David was offered a job as a professor of German at Gettysburg College. During this time Pat substituted at Biglerville High School and in 1968 became a German teacher at Gettysburg Area High School (GAHS). Pat gave birth to her second son, Matthew, on April 26, 1971. Soon after, in 1974, Pat and Dave decided to pack up and move the family to Germany. Pat’s time there was some of her most memorable years, making long-time friends who helped them adjust to life in a different country.
After her years abroad, Pat obtained her Master’s Degree in Special Education from Shippensburg University. She taught Special Education for many years at GAHS and then became the Supervisor of Special Education for the Gettysburg Area School District. She received the Unger Teaching Recognition Award in 1999. Throughout the years, even in 2024, her former students would come up to her and say what a profound difference she made in their lives.
Pat lived her life with unwavering dedication to justice and fairness for all. She helped identify landlords who discriminated in the 1960s and 70s. She was a board member of the Gettysburg YWCA where she took to heart the mission, “eliminating racism and empowering women.” In 2017, Pat was awarded the YWCA of Gettysburg and Adams County Callie award for racial justice. Pat was one of three founding members of the Adam’s County Family Planning Agency, a founder of Project Gettysburg/León, served on the Board of the Interfaith Center for Peace and Justice, and was a board member of the Gettysburg Chamber Orchestra. She spent her free time volunteering at Spiritrust, election polls, and Gettysburg Cares. In addition, she devoted countless hours to the Adams County Literacy Council, starting out as a tutor of adult learners, and then moving on to conduct numerous tutor-training workshops.
Alongside her husband, Pat was an avid sailor and spent lots of time sailing the Chesapeake Bay on their Beneteau 351. They also sailed everywhere from New England to Florida, and chartered sailboats in the Greek islands, and the British Virgin Islands. Their love of travel and adventure included camping across the United States, plus trips to Europe, Costa Rica, New Zealand, Egypt, Peru (where she set up a service-learning project) and numerous service trips to Nicaragua. During a visit with friends in Tanzania, Africa, Pat helped teach at a school for children with physical disabilities. She also helped build homes in El Salvador with Dave and their grandson, Alex.
Pat spent her life breaking down barriers that helped so many people find success. From teaching English to new immigrants to working one-on-one with teenage and adult students, her work had a common thread — to help others find the dignity and justice they deserved in the world.
Pat is survived by Dave, her devoted husband of more than 60 years; her son Michael “Mike”; daughter Karen Meisner and her husband John and their children Alex, Kyle, and Max; son Matt and his wife Alexis “Lexie” and their children Lily and Garrett; and Hannah, her beloved dog and constant companion.
Funeral Services will be held at 1:00 PM on Saturday, July 20, 2024 at St. James Lutheran Church, 109 York Street, Gettysburg, PA with her Pastor, Rev. Andrew Geib, officiating. Interment will follow in the Evergreen Cemetery, Gettysburg. A Visitation will be held on Saturday at the church from 11:00 AM until 1:00 PM. The Monahan Funeral Home in Gettysburg is assisting the family with the funeral arrangements, online tributes and condolences can be made at monahanfuneralhome.com
In lieu of flowers please donate in Pat’s memory to the Crowner Fund for Adams County at the Adams County Community Foundation at 25 S. 4th Street or adamscountycf.org.
