Patricia Petersen Watts

Patricia (Bucchino) Petersen Watts was a cherished Mother, Nana, Sister, Aunt, and Wife during her incredible 88 years of life. She passed away peacefully in the early hours of Saturday, June 22, 2024.

Pat had a long and full life. She was born in San Francisco, CA on September 3rd, 1935, to John and Delphia Bucchino. Her father John was a proud immigrant from Calabria Italy who served a life-long career in the US Army-Calvary Division, while her mother stayed home to care for the nine children.

Pat grew up in Seaside, CA near the Fort Ord army base. There she spent a delightful childhood with her four brothers and four sisters on property abundant with a garden, fruit trees, and animals. Pat was especially close with her sisters who considered themselves “best friends” and needed only their imaginations to play “house” or don make-shift costumes to entertain one another.

Pat was extremely active in high school where she was a majorette, played the violin, and served as a Cadet in the Monterey Civil Air Patrol. In fact, Pat took her very first airplane ride in a Piper two-seater plane while a Cadet.

As a teenager, she and her sisters lived several summers on her Godparent’s apricot orchards in San Jose, CA. Pat was paid to “cut ‘cots” by the crateful, with earnings used to purchase new school clothes for the Fall. Evening and weekend excursions were made to the movie theatre, hiking on the nearby mountainsides, or on trips to an oceanside swimming club known as “The Plunge” on land that is now the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.

During her Senior year at Monterey High School, Pat caught the eye of her close friend Joann’s brother - Gerrald “Jerry” Petersen. They fell in love and were married in 1954.

Pat and Jerry’s lives centered around raising their four sons, Joseph, Cary, Victor, and Dante while living throughout California including Monterey, San Francisco, Salinas, Modesto, Murphys – and eventually settling in Rancho Cordova. Pat was a dedicated “Sports Mom” who attended season after season of the boys' wrestling matches, cross country meets, and baseball games where she kept score while Jerry coached.

In addition to family life and motherhood, Pat enjoyed a 30-year career as the Office Manager for B and J Automotive – just a convenient walk around the corner from the family home.

Tragedy struck the Petersen family in 1978 with the passing of Pat’s husband Jerry at the young age of 45. As a tribute to her late husband, Pat was honored to throw out the first pitch later that year during the dedication ceremony of the newly constructed ballpark, Petersen Field, in Rancho Cordova.

Pat was lucky to find love a second time around and married Stan Watts in 1981. They were wed for 39 years until his passing in 2020. Together, they explored many parts of the world with her sisters, brothers, and their spouses – vacationing in Europe, Alaska, and Hawaii; or closer to home on visits to see relatives in California, Washington, and Indiana. Besides travel, Pat was an avid gardener and loved to cook and try out new recipes for her family.

In addition to her husbands, Pat is preceded in death by her beloved son Cary Petersen, her parents, and three siblings. As a Nana, Pat leaves behind 10 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. Her sons Joseph (Tami), Victor (Mary), and Dante (Bernadette) will deeply miss their Mom yet are blessed to have shared many wonderful years with her and will treasure all the memories. Pat will be forever known as a soft-spoken woman of great strength, kindness, and perseverance, who was devoted to her family above all else.

Click this link to view additional details about Patricia's Services: https://my.gather.app/remember/patricia-watts-2024