Patty Sue Herman
Dr. Patty Sue Herman passed away peacefully at age 70 on June 24, 2020, after a long battle with a very rare neurological disease. She left this life to join her parents on the date of their wedding anniversary and will be greatly missed by her loving brother and sisters, as well as other friends and relatives. Patty i…read more
Dr. Patty Sue Herman passed away peacefully at age 70 on June 24, 2020, after a long battle with a very rare neurological disease. She left this life to join her parents on the date of their wedding anniversary and will be greatly missed by her loving brother and sisters, as well as other friends and relatives. Patty is survived by her sister Joanne (the late David) Ziarek of New Berlin, WI., brother James Herman of Menno, SD., and sister Judy Herman (Greg Houda) of Moran, WY. She is further survived by nieces Michelle Herman, Lisa (Larry) Klaudt, Kristi (Jason) Sayler, Janae Herman, and nephew Travis Herman, as well as great-nieces and nephews Logan Klaudt, Jenna and Morgan Sayler, and Nick and Jack Herman and many cousins. She was preceded in death by her parents William and Nettie Herman and by her brother Gary Herman.
Patty was born in Parkston, South Dakota, and attended a rural elementary school where she took the first and second grades at the same time. She graduated in 1967 from Scotland High School where she was a National Merit Scholar, and from South Dakota State University earning a BS in chemistry & math in 1971 as well as an MS in chemistry in 1974. Her interest in science led her to pursue her doctorate in theoretical chemistry at the University of Iowa where she published several research papers, attended and presented her research at multiple scientific conferences throughout the country, and was recognized nationally for her academic achievements with many awards and honors. She earned her Ph.D. in 1986 with her thesis on “Pressure Broadening of Atomic Spectral Lines” and was subsequently awarded a two-year post-doctoral fellowship to Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, for “The Application of Computational Techniques to Study Reactions of Chemical Carcinogens with Nucleic Acid Components.”
Patty was, first and foremost, a highly intelligent scientist and spent most of her adult life living in Iowa, only moving to Wisconsin in late 2015. She was also very gifted in artistic pursuits such as drawing, writing poetry, playing music, and sewing, and was largely self-taught in all of these areas. She loved her extended family and also enjoyed singing and playing guitar, caring for her plants and cats, doing the hardest Sudoku puzzles using mathematical probabilities, watching Iowa public television, and was always interested in learning new things.
The family extends a special thank you to the staff at Cambridge Castle and to Dr. Raul Mateo for their care in recent years and to the staff of 12S at Aurora St. Luke’s and at Aurora Zilber Hospice for their compassionate care in the past month.
A private family memorial will be held at a later date in South Dakota. Memorials appreciated supporting her favorite Iowa Public Television station at www.iowapbs.org/friends/memorial-gifts.
“Perhaps they are not the stars, but rather openings in Heaven where the love of our lost ones shines down to let us know they are with us.” “There will come a day when the memory of her face will no longer bring a tear to your eye, but a smile to your own.”
hideService Information
Memorial Information
Memorials appreciated supporting her favorite Iowa Public Television station at www.iowapbs.org/friends/memorial-gifts
Leave a Condolence
© 2024 MKJ Marketing | Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy
Owen Filbey posted on 5/31/21
I stumbled onto Patty Sue’s obituary by accident just last night. We had lost touch over the years. I dated Patty Sue when we were in school. I met her during a chemistry club meeting of which we were both members. We ended up chatting for nearly 3 hours after the meeting in front of the old Lincoln library and decided to go out together. We used to go up to the old observatory on top of the then Shepard Hall Annex (old chemistry building). The door key was the same (serendipity?) as my research lab on the third floor. We used to play and sing together up there, no coed dorms allowed in those days. Our song was the 1967 hit by the Turtles “Happy Together”. “Me and you and you and me No matter how they toss the dice, it had to be The only one for me is you, and you for me So happy together” I used to sing the Buddy Holly hit “Peggy Sue” and substituted “Patty” for “Peggy” around her, she probably should get some points for tolerance… Patty Sue also liked Paul Simon’s work a lot. It was the first time I had heard his songs. I still play “Sounds of Silence” on the keyboard and “Scarborough Fair” on the guitar. I also still play the Peter, Paul & Mary song “Very Last Day” that Patty & Jim used to play/sing at their church sponsored folk services. A timeless song still apropos today. She affected my life in many ways, too many to cover here. One was because at the time I was so crummy on the guitar, I worked really hard to get better after we broke up. Eventually I taught guitar classes for the UCLA extension service. On a nostalgic whim I bought a 12-string guitar back in the 70’s, because she liked the 12-string sound so much. I still have that old guitar, the frets completely worn down. I never realized she was a plant person…we could have exchanged cuttings. Patty Sue was easy to be with, my all-time favorite date with her was just going to the laundromat and washing our clothes, somehow, that managed to take until 30 seconds before they locked up the dorm for the night. No surprise though, her entire family were/are just wonderful people to be around. I recall calling Patty Sue’s Mom (’74 I think) years after I had moved to California and just chatted for an hour and a half, although she probably couldn’t remember who I was by that time.