Remembering Patricia Small, 61, whose home was “a mix of Leave it to Beaver and Married With Childre
This is from our local paper about mom.
Patricia Small spent her life making her home a refuge for those in need. Over the years her children knew no cause was too great or obstacle too difficult for her to overcome.
Mrs. Small, a Wilmington resident fondly remembered for her quick wit and contagious smile, died Feb. 11, 2014, at the age of 61.
She didn’t decide to start adopting cats - they showed up on their own accord and she refused to turn them away. Camille Deruise, Mrs. Small’s adopted daughter, remembers the cats being mostly black, turned away out of superstition but welcomed into Mrs. Small’s home.
Once neighbors and friends found out about Mrs. Small’s love of animals they brought her hamsters, rabbits, squirrels, snakes and dogs, too. Most of these animals stayed at Mrs. Small’s home and Ms. Deruise said she was very particular about who she allowed to adopt the animals.
Although she was known as “endearingly sweet,” Ms. Deruise remembers her fondly as “a smarty pants.”
Mrs. Small adopted Ms. Deruise into her home when she was a teenager and Ms. Deruise remembers an overwhelming feeling of home.
“It was like mixing ‘Leave it to Beaver’ with a little bit of ‘Married With Children’,” Ms. Deruise said.
She never felt like a guest in Mrs. Small’s home, even on that very first night.
“She was awesome to talk to about parental wisdom without being parental about it,” Ms. Deruise said, adding Mrs. Small taught her by example how to be a mother.
Mrs. Small went above and beyond during the holidays and Ms. Deruise fondly remembers a red, white and blue Mrs. Small blasting “America, the Beautiful” in the front yard, a BBQ going in the back and fireworks ready for nightfall. Each Fourth of July, Memorial Day and Patriot’s Day were celebrated with the same enthusiasm and “USA pride.”
Ms. Deruise frequently enjoyed homemade meals as well. Mrs. Small would fix huge breakfasts with eggs, bacon, waffles, grits and biscuits. For dessert there were donut holes and cake with the best frosting Ms. Deruise had ever tasted.
“She could cook twelve things at once and everything would be done at the same time,” Ms. Deruise said.
Along with Mrs. Small’s generous nature came a protective instinct and fiery temper thanks to her red hair, according to her children.
“My mother embodied the definition of ‘spirited,’” Donald “Donnie” Wayne Small, Jr., Mrs. Small’s son, said. She listened to both sides of a story and “she wasn’t afraid to come to someone else’s defense if they were being wronged.”
“She taught me how to stick up for myself-the little man. She never backed down,” Mr. Small said.
Mr. Small now carries the strength he learned from his mother and cherishes it
Patricia Small spent her life making her home a refuge for those in need. Over the years her children knew no cause was too great or obstacle too difficult for her to overcome.
Mrs. Small, a Wilmington resident fondly remembered for her quick wit and contagious smile, died Feb. 11, 2014, at the age of 61.
She didn’t decide to start adopting cats - they showed up on their own accord and she refused to turn them away. Camille Deruise, Mrs. Small’s adopted daughter, remembers the cats being mostly black, turned away out of superstition but welcomed into Mrs. Small’s home.
Once neighbors and friends found out about Mrs. Small’s love of animals they brought her hamsters, rabbits, squirrels, snakes and dogs, too. Most of these animals stayed at Mrs. Small’s home and Ms. Deruise said she was very particular about who she allowed to adopt the animals.
Although she was known as “endearingly sweet,” Ms. Deruise remembers her fondly as “a smarty pants.”
Mrs. Small adopted Ms. Deruise into her home when she was a teenager and Ms. Deruise remembers an overwhelming feeling of home.
“It was like mixing ‘Leave it to Beaver’ with a little bit of ‘Married With Children’,” Ms. Deruise said.
She never felt like a guest in Mrs. Small’s home, even on that very first night.
“She was awesome to talk to about parental wisdom without being parental about it,” Ms. Deruise said, adding Mrs. Small taught her by example how to be a mother.
Mrs. Small went above and beyond during the holidays and Ms. Deruise fondly remembers a red, white and blue Mrs. Small blasting “America, the Beautiful” in the front yard, a BBQ going in the back and fireworks ready for nightfall. Each Fourth of July, Memorial Day and Patriot’s Day were celebrated with the same enthusiasm and “USA pride.”
Ms. Deruise frequently enjoyed homemade meals as well. Mrs. Small would fix huge breakfasts with eggs, bacon, waffles, grits and biscuits. For dessert there were donut holes and cake with the best frosting Ms. Deruise had ever tasted.
“She could cook twelve things at once and everything would be done at the same time,” Ms. Deruise said.
Along with Mrs. Small’s generous nature came a protective instinct and fiery temper thanks to her red hair, according to her children.
“My mother embodied the definition of ‘spirited,’” Donald “Donnie” Wayne Small, Jr., Mrs. Small’s son, said. She listened to both sides of a story and “she wasn’t afraid to come to someone else’s defense if they were being wronged.”
“She taught me how to stick up for myself-the little man. She never backed down,” Mr. Small said.
Mr. Small now carries the strength he learned from his mother and cherishes it