Patricia A. Kroekel

Patricia Ann (Stumm) Kroekel, 82, of New Holland, passed away peacefully into the loving arms of her Heavenly Father on Wednesday, December 15, 2021. She was born in Philadelphia, PA on July 27, 1939. Patricia was the only child of the late Edward Stumm and Mary G. (Bevan) Stumm.

She is survived by her caring husband and best friend of 60 years, L. Paul Kroekel. Pat and Paul, both originally from the Philadelphia area, moved to New Holland in 1972 where they raised their family. They moved to a cottage in Garden Spot Village in 2015 where she enjoyed her final years.

Pat is survived by her 3 daughters, Nancy Kroekel Reed, wife of Harry C. Reed III of Forest, VA; Holly Kroekel Good, wife of Daniel K. Good of Waxhaw, NC; and Wendy Lynne Gordon, wife of Glenn I. Gordon of New Holland, PA.

In addition, she was blessed to have in her life 6 grandchildren, Hillary Good, Amy Gordon, Ainsley (Reed) Price, Ethan Good, Alyssa Reed, and Ashley Gordon. She is also survived by a great grandson, Jaidyn Caldwell whom she adored. She spent many years serving the needs of her family in a variety of selfless ways. Her favorite pastime was talking about her daughters, grandchildren, and great grandson. She loved taking and collecting pictures of her family and created many beautiful photo albums over the years.

Bermuda held a special place in Pat’s heart. She met her husband Paul on a cruise to Bermuda in 1961 and they returned to Bermuda a year later on their honeymoon. Since then, they have visited this beautiful island many times during their married life. Her love of Bermuda inspired all 3 of her daughters to honeymoon there as well. Pat and Paul loved to travel. Some of their favorite destinations were Maine, Alaska, Iceland, Holland, and Germany. Pat also loved visiting Cape May and Ocean City, NJ, and Duck, NC when the whole family gathered together for many years.

Pat was artistic and enjoyed a variety of crafts, including counted cross-stitching, scherenschnitte, knitting, crocheting, painting, pressed dried flower arrangements, handmade greeting cards, and sewing. She lovingly sewed many of her childrens’ clothes when they were young. She was especially skilled at creating beautiful stained-glass ornaments and sold them at many craft fairs. She made hundreds of pieces for the Bridgeville E.C. Church for their annual Christmas fundraiser for more than 20 years.

Pat had many other interests including gardening, astronomy, cooking, and baking. She especially enjoyed baking Springerle cookies with her granddaughters. She loved making delicious meals for her family, especially during the holidays. Holidays were special family times and she loved to decorate and beautifully wrap her gifts.

She was a former board member of the New Holland Library, a member of the New Holland Summer Arts Program for many years and enjoyed helping with the New Holland Food Bank. She also worked at Yoder’s Craft Shop.

In lieu of flowers the family asks for any memorial contributions be made to Garden Spot Village Benevolent Fund or a charity of your choosing. There will be a private visitation.