Patrick K. "Pat" McDonald's Obituary
Marine veteran and beloved husband, son, brother, nephew, uncle, cousin, and friend, Patrick Kelly McDonald passed away unexpectedly on May 28, 2023, at the age of 44. He was born on July 25, 1978, to Richard McDonald and Sherry Boerder in Muskegon, MI, which he has called home most of his life. He graduated from Mason County Central High School class of 1996. He dedicated many years to CWC Textron, before recently dedicating eight years to Alcoa where he was a founder.
Patrick served 4 years in the Marine Corp as a corporal, including the 8th motors, 2nd force service support group (2dFSSG) and finished his career in the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit. His last year was spent between Pakistan and Afghanistan doing security patrols along the border. When stationed state side, Patrick shared fond memories of The Barracks, where his niece originated his nickname of “Fat Pat 1-2” and he shared many Sunday mornings chatting about anything and everything with his Marine brother and friend, Bob. Patrick did additional operations in Greece, Venezuela and Egypt. The discipline and patriotism he learned in the Marines never left him, he respected and saluted anyone he met that served.
On October 3, 2009, he married the love of his life, Sheannan “Shea” Patricio in Muskegon. Patrick loved his wife, Sheannan, and was her protector and companion in marriage for 13 years. Together they had a passion for adopting rescue dogs and he loved his fur babies. Patrick enjoyed taking them on walks, going to the beach, morning wrestling, and endless snuggles, otherwise known as lap time. Along with his dogs, he adored his nieces and nephews, and even shared his birthday with a niece, in which he understood how his day was no longer about him, but his beautiful niece. He was a fitness enthusiast and enjoyed being active. Patrick was an outdoorsman, who enjoyed fishing and was also a skilled mechanic, passionate about finetuning his brother’s motorcycle in his spare time. If you knew Pat, you knew how hard he played and how hard he fought. He encouraged you to want to be a better husband, brother, and man.
Patrick, who all knew as Pat, is survived by his loving wife, Sheannan Patricio-McDonald; mother, Sherry Boerder; brother, Chris Meriman; sister, Lindy Brown; uncle, Jeffrey McDonald; niece, Jessica McDonald; nine additional nieces and nephews; several friends and extended family members; and many Marine brothers and sisters that he kept in touch with who gave him the nickname of “Groundhog” and “Fat Pat 1-2”, including his best friend, Bob Kumpula. Pat was preceded in death by his father, Richard McDonald; grandma, Margaret Stevens; aunt, Barb Stevens; uncles, David Stevens, Fred Stevens, and David Patricio; and twin brother, who was also a Marine, Michael McDonald. Michael gifted him a bible before he passed, in which he read faithfully every morning.
A Celebration of Patrick’s Life will be held at 4:00 PM on Monday, June 5, 2023, at The Lee Chapel of Sytsema Funeral & Cremation Services, 6291 S. Harvey St., Norton Shores, MI 49444. A visitation with the family will be held one-hour prior. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be directed to the Wounded Warrior Project or the Noah Project. Share memories with the family at www.sytsemafh.com.
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