STORRS, CT — Patricia Lawton Barnes, 53, of Storrs, CT, died peacefully at home surrounded by family on January 11th. Three years ago Ms Barnes was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in her foot. Following the amputation of her foot, there was a brief period of remission, but early last spring she learned that the cancer had spread.
Born in Wethersfield, CT to Richard and Marguerite (Brown) Lawton, now of New London, NH, Patricia was a graduate of Simsbury (CT) High School and Middlebury College (VT) after spending junior year abroad at St. Andrews University, Scotland. Following a brief residence in San Francisco and the Hudson Valley in New York, she and her husband, Morgan, settled in Storrs Mansfield, CT where Mr. Barnes teaches English at E. O. Smith High School. Until recently, Patricia worked for Voya Investments, Windsor, CT where she was an Assistant Vice President of Business Supports and Operations.
Patricia was immensely proud of her twins, Anna and Samuel, and deeply loved them, her college sweetheart husband, Morgan, and all her family. A creative and resourceful person, she loved outdoor activity including biking, swimming, and walking and running in the woods near her home with her two dogs. Whether at work, with her family, involved in athletic activities, or tackling her more recent health struggles, Patricia embraced life with admirable tenacity and grace.
Ms. Barnes is survived by her husband, Morgan, children, Anna and Samuel, parents, Marguerite and Richard Lawton, sisters Cynthia Lawton-Abery and her husband, Brian Abery, (MN) and Susan and her husband, William Fulton (MA), sister-in-“spirit” Hillary Barnes Hoopes (MD), and a large extended family including Morgan’s parents, Timothy and Pam Barnes, brother-in-law Jason Barnes, step-father Robert Nussbaum, and 12 nieces and nephews. Patricia was predeceased by her eldest sister, Maura Lawton Perkins (Concord, MA and Slope and Shore in New London).
Burial will be in the Spring near one of her favorite hiking trails. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Sarcoma and Bone Cancer Center