Patricia Colleen Galbraith

Patricia Colleen Galbraith, 74, of Wasilla passed away at Mat-Su Regional Medical Center in Palmer on Aug. 28, 2008.

Memorial services will be held Sept. 9 in Flint, Mich.

Galbraith was born Jan. 29, 1934 in Flint to Harold John and Catherine (Shaw) Bradford. She attended school in Flint, graduating from Flint Central High School. She married Merton Neitzke, and later married William A. Galbraith. After high school, she briefly worked for AC Spark Plug. As the wife of an airman, Galbraith spent time in Lincoln, Neb., Marysville, Calif., Minot, N.D., and Oscoda, Mich.

In the early 1970s, Galbraith returned to Flint, completed insurance policy management training and assisted the operation of a local State Farm Insurance office. She also worked for Sears. In August 2002, Galbraith moved to Wasilla to live near her son.

Galbraith loved to visit and was always quick to place a call to loved ones, her family wrote. “With a happy, enthusiastic and contagious laugh and a quick, clever sense of humor, she would make conversation with everyone along her way, on the bus, at church and while shopping,” they wrote. “Baking and eating delicious treats was her passion. Her home was always clean. She looked forward to reading the newspaper and keeping up with local, national and world events.”

Her family said Galbraith would fill the air with energetic and uplifting music, usually big band era or rock-and-roll. She collected baby dolls, vinyl records and funny or interesting clippings from the newspaper and was devoted to her pets and plants. She loved the Lord and taught her family to pray and seek God.

Galbraith is survived by sons John Robert “Jug” Neitzke of Wasilla, William Arthur Galbraith Jr. of Clio, Mich., and Kenneth B. Galbraith of Holt, Mich.; six grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; brother John Bradford of Saginaw, Mich.; and sisters Rosie Gavriloff of Schwartz Creek, Mich., and Donna Cornelison of Flint Township, Mich.

Online tributes may be viewed at www.alaskacremation.com

Arrangements were entrusted to the Hasara Family at the Cremation Society of Alaska.