Patricia-Anne Griffin Barker passed away peacefully surrounded by her loving family on November 23, 2017, after a courageous five year battle with cancer. Born November 19, 1943, Pat was the daughter of Henry W. Griffin Jr. and Mary J. Conway Griffin Proxee. She is survived by her loving husband of forty-four years, Rodney M. Barker, who was always by her side. Pat grew up in Hartford, in the Parkville area, and graduated from Our Lady of Sorrows Grammar School and Mary Immaculate Academy in New Britain in 1961. She went on to attend Emerson College in Boston, a city she fell in love with. She worked for The Hartford Financial Services Group for over twenty years, retiring as an Annuity Manager. After retiring from The Hartford she opened the Patchwork Cottage in Avon, doing what she loved; quilting. She gave quilting classes to adults and children alike, sold quilting materials, and traveled to many quilting shows. She served as the president of Farmington Valley Quilters Guild for two years. In recent years, she enjoyed traveling and exploring new destinations with her husband. She had hoped to return to Ireland to visit her family abroad once again, in particular her loving cousin Netta and her husband Joe Murphy. She loved spending time with her two precious grandchildren, watching their sports games was a favorite pastime. She also enjoyed spending summers on Cape Cod with family, and recently returned to celebrate her 44th wedding anniversary this past October.
Along with her husband Rod, Pat leaves behind her children; James Barker and fiancé Glenn of Putnam, John Barker of Strafford, New Hampshire, and Deborah (Barker) Perry and her husband Ron Perry of Simsbury and their two children, Josh and Maura. She also leaves her loving brother of Columbia, CT and Savannah, GA, Dr. David Griffin and his three sons and their families as well as her sister in-law, Betty Mills of Champlain, NY. Pat was predeceased by her parents and her step-father, James Proxee, and her sister-in-law, Annmarie Griffin. The family would like to thank the staff at St. Francis Cancer Care and McLean Hospice of Simsbury, especially her nurse, Linda. Calling hours will be held on Thursday, November 30, 2017 from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm at Vincent’s Funeral Home, 120 Albany Turnpike, Canton CT 06019. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, December 1, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Catherine of Siena Church, 265 Stratton Brook Road, West Simsbury. Burial will be at the convenience of the family. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center or St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. Please visit Pat’s Book of Memories at www.vincentfuneral home.com for online condolences.