Patricia J. Arnold

The Family of Patricia J. Arnold is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting celebrating the life of Patricia J. Arnold.
Time: Jan 31, 2022 01:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)

Meeting ID: 837 7149 0170

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83771490170

-Oh, Those Beautiful Blue Eyes!

Patricia Jean Arnold, aged 61 years young, passed away unexpectedly at St. Michael's Hospital in Stevens Point on Monday January 24, 2022. Patricia was born on Friday, August 12, 1960 to Martin and Marian Arnold of Wisconsin Rapids. She was child number 7 of 8 children in a family of 4 boys and 4 girls. Patricia, also known as Patty, Trisha, or Trish by her beloved family, was an ambitious, articulate, brilliant, talented, accomplished, and beautiful woman. She was the foundation of her family. Trish was a kind, sweet wife; a loving, proud mother; a devoted, loving daughter, and beautiful sister to 7 siblings.Trish had a tremendous love of family, education, music, children, and all animals. Her family was always her priority. Trisha was an organ donor, and has given life and sight to someone in need which speaks so highly of her life and legacy. Patricia graduated from Lincoln High School in 1978 with honors; and later graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point in 1981 with honors.  From there, she went on to attend and graduate from Hamline University School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota. She was a magnificent scholar and graduated Summa Cum Laude with her Juris Doctorate in 1985. She was a staff attorney for the State of Minnesota for many years. Even recently, she continued taking credits and online classes and was a Guardian Ad Litem.

Her family and her 3 children; Alexandra Ludwig, Anthony Ludwig, and Jacob Ludwig, along with adopted son Ethan Requet and exchange children Carlotta Baravalle, Chloé Meyer, and Pedro Sánchez de Diego were her immense pride and joy. Trish, along with her husband, Thomas (Tom) Ludwig were very active in their children's educations, athletic activities, and busy lives. Never to turn away anyone in need, Trisha always opened her heart and her house to everyone. She leaves behind her beloved husband, Tom, three beautiful and accomplished children; Alexandra, Anthony and Jacob, adopted son Ethan Requet, who was a shining star in her life, and her wonderful international children Carlotta, Chloé, and Pedro. Trish also had many beloved four legged furbabies, who she dearly cherished.  Additionally, Patricia is survived by her loving mother, Marian Arnold of Wisconsin Rapids as well as 3 brothers: Thomas Arnold (Sue) of Brookfield, Wisconsin, Robert Arnold (Debra) of Wisconsin Rapids, Mark Arnold (Kathy) of Leesburg, Florida;  3 sisters: Susan Herscher (Walt) of Winter Garden, Florida, Mary Joling (Peter) of Wisconsin Rapids, Kathleen Mergler (Joel) of Delaware, Ohio, as well as sister in law, Patricia Arnold of Door County, Wisconsin, and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her father, Martin, brother, James, and special family member, Bobba (Robert Nemec.)

Written by Marian Arnold, Mother and her Sister & Best Friend, Mary Joling

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The information authored by Marian and Mary, although lovely and necessary, is a condensed summary of the life Trish lived. To supplement it, I have asked our children to share some of their experiences and perspectives regarding who their mother is to them.

Written by Tom Ludwig, Husband

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This is the most impossible task. After experiencing the most impossible thing I have been through in my life, how can it be possible to even begin to adequately and attentively characterize my mother within the limits of print, when I have an entire lifetime to fill in this void? How can I even begin to comprehend a world where my mother is no longer living? How do I understand this?

My Mom was my greatest advocate, the most caring person in my life, and my best friend. She is the person that I was fortunate enough to have spent the most time with, time that I will cherish forever. My mother was the most loving person I have ever had the privilege of knowing, the kindest person I have ever met, and the person with the biggest heart.

Love and Kindness cannot be taught, but they can be grown and nourished, and that was the most important thing she instilled in my life.

To her, kindness not only applies to those in your life, but to those who you do not know, those you will never know- and to oneself.

My mom was always in my corner, ready to take on whatever challenge I was facing with me- never letting me take on anything alone. I will forever be grateful for that. To my mom, her kids were everything and were always put first, something that was apparent to us at all times. She established herself as a career woman, working hard on her education and her profession, but did not hesitate to give that life up once we came into her life. That is just who my mom was: selfless and devoted to her family.  She did not hesitate to come to every single event my brothers and I had, whether it was athletic competitions, tournaments, dance recitals, awards ceremonies, graduations, or even practices. These moments were the great joys of her life, shown through her bright smile.

I will treasure even the smallest moments with her, although they don't feel so small in hindsight. I will miss her smile, her laugh that would fill up the room, and most of all, her love.

I will miss her so much but will go on knowing that she will always be with me. I will see her in everything, and we will be together.

Written by Alexandra Ludwig, Daughter

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My mom is a butterfly. Her beauty and grace infinitely projected through the gentle hum of softly beating wings. She is my sunshine, and every lyric within the song that she would sing to me when skies were gray. The words she sang calmed me as a child, and they will be forevermore held inside my heart as priceless treasure. My mom is the sound of a cello. She is the ambience of a baseball game on a still summer night, My mom is my hero. She is elegance, beauty, warmth, and all things unconditional. My mom is a butterfly. When I see one, I will think of her.

Written by Anthony Ludwig, Son

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It is impossible to encapsulate the life of anyone succinctly within the margins of a newspaper. How could I possibly describe the life of my mother and the person she was in a couple of paragraphs? I am beyond blessed to have been graced with her love for as long as I was. She loved fiercely and unconditionally. If there was one thing my mother did more than anything, it was love. She saw beauty in everything and showed me. She taught me how to love-- how she managed to teach all of my siblings how to love while juggling everything else still, and always will amaze me.

She always fought the hardest for my education. She knew I was the happiest and healthiest at school so she did absolutely everything she could for my education even though it meant I was living  four hours away from her, in Michigan.

As I was heading back to school from winter break, I was having car troubles that forced me to get a hotel in the middle of my drive. The next morning, I made it back home and got a different car. When I got home, I was able to say goodbye to my mom again, but this time I hugged her a little closer. I was able to say goodbye, but I had no idea that would be the last.

There was not a single one of my events she would miss for the world. Whether it was a basketball game, her chaperoning every possible field trip she could or literally any other school or sports event, she was there. She was always there, and if she wasn't she was with my brother or sister, but would be sure to apologize for not being there. She couldn't possibly be in two places at the same time, but she would still try. She would even drive hours just to catch a couple minutes of the end. At the time I was wondering why she would waste her time just to see me for a couple of minutes, but now I cherish every second we spent together. It is impossible to imagine a world where she is not there, because she is still here.

It's hard to use the past tense when talking about her and the things she did. Her time on this earth has passed, but she is not dead. She lives on through the people she loves, the things she has taught me and the way she nurtures and loves me. Her love had no end here and will never end through the passage of time. Her love continues and always will.

Written by Jacob Ludwig, Son

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Pat welcomed me and treated me as her daughter from the very first moment I stepped foot on American land all the way across from Italy when I was seventeen. It is indeed as I feel even now that I'm twenty-five and we've been physically apart for all these years. Pat bought my school supplies for my first day at SPASH, showed up at every game (even at those she knew I wouldn't have played), picked me up from every corner of Portage County and walked with me every mile of our neighborhood to sell calendars for a fundraiser I particularly cared about, and she helped me choose my Prom dress.

She would make my favorite flavor of coffee every morning, bake blueberry scones because she knew they were my favorites. But above all these 'little' big things, that would be too many to enumerate all, she always made me feel like I was a part of the family. Her love was infinite and genuine, so strong that even my parents that never met her in person have always been able to sense. We shared our love for our dog Izzy, for the donuts we used to pick up on the way to visit grandma on Sunday afternoon, for the porch in front of the kitchen window. She used to end every conversation we had on the phone with "love you, miss you". Four words that I will forever feel for her, my American mom. An infinite love,  forever missing.

Written by Carlotta Baravalle, Italian Daughter

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Pat,

Thank you.

Thank you for letting me meet your family, for trusting me to come into your home. Thank you for welcoming me with the kindness and the big heart that you have. Thank you for being my "American mom" during this wonderful month I spent with you and the whole family. Thank you for making me laugh, thank you for sharing with me all those beautiful moments engraved forever in my memory with your beautiful family, Tom, Alex, Tony and Jakey. All five of you are engraved in my heart for life.

Today I mourn your loss. The world mourns your loss. You had a heart of gold like I have rarely met and you are already missed. The world is sadder without you, blander. But I like to think that you are here, that you are watching over us as you always did, that from the sunshine you were, you are now a beautiful shining star.

I will miss you Pat, but I will never forget you and you will live on through us, through the beautiful moments we will remember, through our memories and especially in our hearts.

Forever, love you

Written by Chloé Meyer, French Daughter

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You brought me out of one of the worst times of my life. I was  Introduced to you by your son, Tony, who is just as kind hearted, and accepted into a family as a son- a family that shares your values. Without hesitation, you helped me when my foot was dislocated, all while barely knowing me, and when you never had to do so. You'd give me rides and let me stay at the lodge up north. When you knew I was lonely, you got me a dog. You invited me to Thanksgiving, despite not knowing me. When you said you loved me, it already felt like you had been my mother for years. When I dropped our dog off, I'd feel guilty about leaving him as much as having him. You were someone I'd be willing to drop anything for in a heartbeat, and I tried to do so as much as possible, to hopefully give a fraction back of what you had given me.

Through your great kindness, you showed me how to be a better man without seeming to try. You showed me what love should be like. You showed me how to care about someone other than myself and truly mean it. We traded stories of our love of baseball, travel, and made sure one another traveled safely. When I traveled the country while sleeping in my car to see some baseball, you'd check in with me often. When you went to Hungary, I called frequently.

That last Christmas gift you gave me was such a surprise. I seldom get gifts anymore, and because it was from you, I could've gotten a lump of coal and I would have cherished it. You imagined I'd get a home bar one day and gave me a bunch of St. Louis Cardinals gear. Included was a red blanket, which I then put on our dog and sent you a photo. "Such a snuggle bug!" you'd always say. I came to pick up our dog and talk for a few minutes. You invited me to sit down, and the few minute talk turned into a few hours. We spoke about family, life, and had light conversation. The last weekend we spent together sums up our relationship well. We had chicken sandwiches, mint tea, and watched a Packer game on Saturday. I forgot to bring the ice cream you liked that time. This time we didn't make our favorite: spaghetti tacos. We talked about the Cardinals and Twins (I still owe you a Twins game,) how cute our dog is, and I complained about school. I wanted to drop out, you told me just to hang on so I can pass.

I didn't tell you, but I was holding onto UW-Stevens Point's "Pass It On" token to give you at my graduation. In May, we will both be alumni of the same school.

I came back on Sunday to drop off our dog and try to help you put together something that might help make life a little better. It took a little longer than expected and you told me I should go to work and that you didn't want me to miss out on orders for Doordash. I told you not to worry.

When it was time to leave, you went with me to the door, we exchanged "love yous", a hug, and a kiss on the cheek.

"Be careful on the ice, Bud-Bud. I love you. See you later."

Written by Ethan Requet, Son

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Patricia

My love

My aura

My wife

My life

Written by Tom Ludwig

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In lieu of flowers, the family is asking that donations be made to shesthefirst.org and/or a local food pantry in Patricia's name. Celebration of Life service for Patricia will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Monday January 31, 2022. The family invites all who want to view the service via Skype by going to pisarskifuneralhome.com and clicking on Pat's obituary where there will be a link to click on to join the service 15 minutes prior to the service on Monday. The family is planning on a celebration of life service this summer where people can attend. Pisarski Funeral Homes are honor to be serving the family. For online condolences please visit www.pisarskifuneralhome.com

The Family of Patricia J. Arnold is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting celebrating the life of Patricia J. Arnold.
Time: Jan 31, 2022 01:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83771490170

Meeting ID: 837 7149 0170