Patricia Anne Yahn

Patricia Anne Yahn, age 91, was born in Erie Pennsylvania on June 7, 1928 to the late Michael and Lauretta Prosser Sontheimer. Pat had an incredible life full of adventure and travel and she was blessed to die peacefully at her home surrounded by family and friends on August 28, 2019 

     As a young woman, Patricia studied art under Sister Angelica at Mercyhurst College and went to work as a commercial artist in the advertising departments at Trask’s and later the Boston Store.  She would hand draw the sketches of the models wearing the stores’ clothes that would appear in the newspapers before photography became popular. She later became involved with the Junior League of Erie, serving as its president in1968- 1970’s and designed and did the scenery and advertisements for their annual plays and dances as well as Santa’s Castle scenery. She served on and was President of the Millcreek School Board throughout the 1970’s as well as serving on numerous boards including Hamot Hospital, Wayside Church, and the Commonwealth Board of the Medical College of Pennsylvania. She had been an active member of Carrie T. Garden Club for 30 years and served as president, she was recognized as a finalist for Woman of the year, and was given the International Women’s year award for her artist exhibition in 1975. In the 1980s she opened her own interior design store, Interiors of Erie and ran that until she retired in the 1990’s. 

     While on the Junior League, Pat helped raise funds for the construction of the Erie Planetarium, which is now the Yahn Planetarium at Penn State Behrend. She  also has created endowments for annual Patricia S. Yahn Art Shows at both Mercyhurst and Penn State Behrend, as well as scholarships at UPMC Hamot. 

      Patricia met her husband, Walter Johnson Yahn as a teenager and he was the love of her life. They were married 66 years until his death in 2016. Together they were avid travelers; exploring most of the United States, Africa, all of Europe, the Baltic States, Scandinavia, Japan, China, Bangkok, Thailand,  Russia, the Caribbean, and Mexico.  She was an enthusiastic participant in skiing, tennis, golf, water skiing, and scuba diving. During her travels, she was a passenger on the Orient Express, the Queen Mary, and the Concord. She even took a submarine ride into the Cayman Trench and hiked down the Grand Canyon.

Pat went to Alaska when she was in her late 60’s to participate in dog sledding and she traveled to Africa seven times, going on numerous safaris in Tanzania, and Botswana while she was in her 60’s and 70’s. She always took her sketch pad and her camera to continue her art work while she traveled.

    In addition to her parents, she was proceeded in death by her brother Kenneth Sontheimer and her husband Walter.

 Patricia is survived by her brother-in-law, Skip Yahn (Allen) and his wife Barbara (of Jamestown, NY), her four children, Jeff Yahn (Arizona) Susan Yahn and her husband Peter MacPherson ( South Carolina) Cindy Yahn Grode and her husband Edward (Erie), Greg Yahn and his wife Heather,(Erie) , 13 Grandchildren: Cameron, Devon, Marshall, Arron, Hayley, Ben, Graham, Kelsey, Trevor, Bryce, Simon, Harlie and Eli, and as well as 4 great grandchildren and three nieces and nephews.

Pat’s family would like to thank her wonderful caregivers and UPMC Family Hospice who have done such a great job keeping her happy and well cared for as well as making it possible for her to stay in her home.

Friends and family are invited to call at Burton Westlake Funeral Home, 3801 West 26^th St. Erie on Wednesday, September 4^th from 3pm to 7pm and are invited to attend services there Thursday at 10:30am. with Rev James Bernhardt and Rev. Keith Sundberg officiating.

   In lieu of flowers please contribute to Asbury Woods, 4105 Asbury Rd., Erie, PA 16506; the Erie Humane Society, 2407 Zimmerly Rd., Erie, PA 16506; or the UPMC Home Healthcare and Family Hospice, 1700 Peach St. Suite 224, Erie, PA 16501.