CAROLYN BETH PRUET PATTERSON, 86, passed
away very peacefully with her children at her
side on Sept. 2, 2020. She was an Austin Artist,
Wife, Mother and Grandmother.
Carolyn was born in Ranger, TX on June 19, 1934
to Aileen Elizabeth Blinn Pruet & Chesley Burton
Pruet. Along with her older brother Ronald,
Carolyn had a wonderfully happy childhood she
fondly reminisced about riding horses, playing
organ & piano, participating in church activities,
reading, painting, drawing & hosting the occasional
tea party for her kittens. Carolyn graduated from
Ranger High School in 1951 and attended Hardin-
Simmons University in Abilene where she was a White
Horse Rider and a music major. She soon transferred
to the University of Texas where she received her
Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts. She loved her time
at UT & enjoyed the sisterhood of Alpha Phi sorority.
A real beauty, she was named to the "Most Beautiful
Co-Ed" list while at UT. She later received a Master's
Degree in counseling and guidance at Texas Christian
University in Fort Worth.
Carolyn met her late husband of 55 years, Dr. James
White Patterson, at a Fort Worth art opening. She
found Jim charming and witty, and Jim was captivated
by Carolyn's beauty, grace and intellect. The two
started dating, and were married in Dec. of 1960.
Their son Blake and daughter Roslyn were born in
Fort Worth in 1963 and 1965 respectively. After
stops in Longview and Sherman, Jim, Carolyn and the
kids moved to Dallas in 1968 where Jim taught at
Southern Methodist University and Carolyn was an
artist. In 1978, the family made their last move,
settling in Austin where both Jim and Carolyn
worked for the Austin Independent School District
with Jim as an administrator and Carolyn as a high
school counselor.
The family found their church home at Northwest Hills
United Methodist Church & Carolyn blessed the community
for over 40 years with her artistic contributions and
friendships. Throughout her life, Carolyn was very
spiritual and was active in Sunday School, Bible
studies, and other events; she often incorporated
hymns, verses and religious themes in her artwork.
When the new sanctuary was designed, Carolyn created
the stained glass window for the new sanctuary. A
large cross set amidst Texas hills and rivers are
memorialized in the large and beautiful stained-glass
window over the altar. Carolyn co-founded North Hills
Gallery at the church, where she and co-curators Betty
Jameson and Marjeanne Rutt have supported numerous
artists through monthly exhibits open to the community
for over 20 years.
As a professional artist, Carolyn's work has been shown
in over 90 national and international juried exhibits,
where she has won numerous awards, as recently as 2017.
Her professional affiliations include Signature membership
in Southwestern Watercolor Society, The Taos Society of
Watercolorists, the Texas Watercolor Society, Third Coast
Painters and First Frontier Collage Group; she was also
a member of the National Watercolor Society, Waterloo
Watercolor Group, and the Society of Watercolor Artists.
"Accomplished" is a word that aptly describes Carolyn.
Besides keeping up a busy social and family calendar, she
& Jim were both proud members of Liz Carpenter's "Getting
Better All the Time" (GBATTS) singers, where they enjoyed
the company of longtime Austinites and many local performances.
She cheerfully gave her time to philanthropy and was especially
proud to support the Settlement Home for Children and the
Women's Symphony League. Somehow during all of these volunteer
and creative endeavors, Carolyn found time to work as a School
Counselor at Anderson, Lago Vista, and Bowie High Schools.
Carolyn was an amazing entertainer, and relished every detail
of throwing a party, setting the most beautiful table and
ensuring the enjoyment of each guest through music, stories,
wonderful food and treasured company. She loved playing games,
including bridge, dominoes and lately Mah Jongg and Bunco;
she was an avid reader, and was a member of the "Book Babes"
book club for many years. Along with her family,
Carolyn enjoyed sailing on Lake Travis on their family sailboat,
The Double Dolphin. Carolyn loved to travel with friends and
family to other countries, but had a special fondness for the
mountains of Colorado and New Mexico. She also cherished trips
to the Texas and Florida coasts with long-time friends, where
she would pull out her paints and brushes and create lasting
visual memories for her lucky recipients.
Carolyn, known as "Mimi" by her 6 grandchildren, shared with
each one of them a special, deep and meaningful relationship,
playing an integral part of their lives from diapers to college
as they grew up with her in Austin. Throughout her life, she
was gracious and generous of spirit. She treasured spending
quality time with her family and found joy in arranging trips
and adventures with her six grandchildren. She never failed to
make each grandchild feel special, encouraged, and thoroughly
loved through memorable activities and anecdotes.
Carolyn will be profoundly missed by her devoted children Blake
Edward Patterson and Roslyn Caroleen Patterson Breen, son-in-
law Sean Edward Breen, daughter-in-law Angie Hartel Patterson,
and treasured grandchildren Connor, Logan, Ryan and Dillon
Breen and Finley and Ava Patterson all of Austin. Carolyn is
also survived by her brother-in-law and sister-in-law Julian
Culver and Ann Patterson, her sister-in-law Myra Sue Ice
Pruet (RHS-1945), and numerous nieces, nephews and their
families.
She has been enthusiastically welcomed by those who preceded in
death her beloved husband James White (Jim) Patterson, mother
Aileen Elizabeth Blinn Pruet, father Chesley Burton (C.B.)
Pruet, & brother Ronald Burton Pruet, Sr. (RHS-1945). Carolyn's
family extends a sincere and heart-felt thank you to the friends
who helped Carolyn continue her busy and fulfilling life in
recent years.
HUSBAND: DR. JAMES WHITE "JIM" PATTERSON, 85,
passed away very peacefully on May 16, 2016 with his
children at his side.
Jim was born in Santa Anna, TX on June 22, 1930, to Reverend
Joseph Isham Patterson & Caroline Anderson White Patterson.
The middle of three rambunctious boys, Jim and his brothers
were raised to live with faith, integrity, and a love of
life. Following the church's calling, the Patterson family
moved often throughout north central Texas, and Jim quickly
learned to meet and befriend all those who crossed his path.
He retained friendships with hundreds of friends, fraternity
brothers, co-workers, and students over his 85+ years.
Jim was graduated from Graham High School in 1948, then
followed in his father and older brother's footsteps to
attend Southern Methodist University in Dallas. At SMU,
Jim had a grand time making lifetime friends in the brother-
hood of Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, and received his
Bachelor of Arts in History in 1952. He continued his
education at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville,
where he lived with relatives at Anchorage, the family
estate, while working on his Masters in American History.
Upon receiving his Masters' degree in 1954, Jim entered
the military with basic training at Fort Ord, California
and was stationed at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center in
Denver, CO. Once out of the military, Jim began his
teaching career in the Fort Worth public school system
at Paschal High School.
In Fort Worth, Jim met his cherished wife of 55 years,
Carolyn Beth Pruet, at an art opening where her art
work was being shown. Jim continued to impress Carolyn
with his wit and charm, and the two soon starting dating.
After marrying in Dec. of 1960, Jim and Carolyn lived
and started their family in Fort Worth before moving
to Austin, where Jim earned his Doctorate in Education
from The University of Texas in Austin in 1969.
Jim was a champion for education – he continued his
teaching career at Austin College and then returned to
SMU as a professor in the School of Education. After
deciding to leave academia, Jim and his family made
their last move, back to Austin, where Jim worked as
Assistant Director of Secondary Personnel for the
Austin Independent School District, recruiting and
hiring many great teachers for the area public schools
until his retirement in 1992. Even after retirement
from AISD, Jim continued to support high quality
education, performing teacher evaluations for Texas
State University around the Central Texas area.
A proud Methodist, Jim was a long-time member of
Northwest Hills United Methodist Church and blessed
the congregation for over 30 years with his smooth,
booming bass voice singing in numerous choirs and
quartets within the church and community. He was a
popular and enthusiastic member of the "Getting
Better All the Time" (GBATTS) singers, where he
was nicknamed "THE Voice".
Jim enjoyed many sports, including tennis, golf,
water and snow skiing, and sailing Lake Travis.
He was a formidable bridge player and relished
any kind of cards, dominoes, & other games. Jim
was bursting with humor, and all those who knew
him will always remember special times, anecdotes
and stories – and if he couldn't come up with a
good joke for a particular situation, he was prone
to simply make one up on the spot (he was especially
keen on elephant jokes!).
Always the gentleman, Jim exuded kindness and
dignity. He bonded with those he met, and held
dear friends made from grade school all the way
to recent years in medical care. He was friendly,
witty, and entertaining, and owned a kingdom of
wealth in his many friendships. Jim radiated joy,
and blessed was the person on the receiving end
of his bear hug, warm smile, and twinkling blue
eyes – he will be dearly missed by all who knew
him.
Jim was devoted to his family, and was thrilled
to have his children and grandchildren living
nearby in Austin – some of his favorite memories
were family vacations in Colorado, New Mexico,
the Texas Coast, golfing (anywhere), sailing on
Lake Travis and visiting relatives in Charlottes-
ville, VA.
Jim's family extends a sincere and heart-felt
thank you to the caregivers and staff at Brookdale
Spicewood Springs (formerly Emeritus), Retirement
& Nursing Home Center, and Hospice Austin.
Jim will be deeply missed by his wife of 55 years,
Carolyn, his two children Blake Edward Patterson
and Roslyn Caroleen Patterson Breen, son-in-law
Sean Edward Breen and daughter-in-law Angie Hartel
Patterson, and treasured grandchildren Connor,
Logan, Ryan and Dillon Breen and Ava and Finley
Patterson – all of Austin.
Jim is also survived by his brothers Joseph Redwine
Patterson and Julian Culver Patterson, sister-in-
law Ann Patterson and numerous nieces, nephews and
their families. He was preceded in death by his
mother Caroline Anderson White Patterson, father
Reverend Joseph Isham Patterson, brother-in-law
Ronald Burton Pruet Sr., and sister-in-law Ann
Cumber Patterson.