Great Cranberry Island -- Patricia Elizabeth Brooks, née Corcoran, died August 1, 2016, at EMMC, peacefully with her family by her side after a long illness. She was born October 25, 1933, in Manhattan, the daughter of Michael and Brigid (Delia) Corcoran, née Clarke. Her parents emigrated in 1925 from Co. Longford, Ireland, a place Patricia visited many times, remaining close to family there.

Patricia graduated from St. Catherine Academy in Washington Heights and attended Hunter College. She worked for the FBI as a stenographer, where she was on duty in 1954 the evening Puerto Rican nationalists opened fire inside the House of Representatives. She then worked for the Institute of Radio Engineers, the Electronics Industry Association, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), where she retired in 1970 as staff administrator to the technical director.

She married Carl Nelson Brooks, whose roots are on Great Cranberry Island, on May 23, 1970, at St. Margaret in Riverdale, New York. They had met at an IEEE volunteers meeting in Los Angeles. They settled in Arlington Heights, Illinois, where both of their sons were born. They then lived in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, before moving in 1976 to Chagrin Falls, Ohio, where they lived for twenty-five years. Patricia stayed home with her children until 1984, working part-time for IEEE. She subsequently worked at ASM International, retiring in 2001 as publisher of the society's technical magazine, Advanced Materials & Processes.

After retiring, they moved to Great Cranberry Island and Ellsworth. In retirement, Patricia pursued her interests in cooking, gardening, cruising, and reading. She was a talented, enthusiastic cook all her life. Friends looked forward to her St. Patrick's Day loaves of Irish soda bread. A lifelong and devout Catholic, Patricia was a lector and eucharistic minister for many years at St. Joan of Arc Church in Chagrin Falls, and was editor of the parish newsletter.

She is survived by her husband of 46 years, her sons Carl of Great Cranberry Island and Francis of South Portland, and a brother Michael of Ellsworth. She was predeceased by a brother, John Francis, who died in infancy.

A funeral Mass will be held Monday, August 8, at 11 a.m., at St. Joseph in Ellsworth with visitation in the church at 10 a.m. A reception will follow. Burial will be later in the family cemetery on Great Cranberry Island. Gifts in Patricia's memory can be made to Boys Town, P.O. Box 8000, Boys Town, NE 68010.

Arrangements by Jordan-Fernald Funeral Homes, 113 Franklin St, Ellsworth. Condolences may be left at www.jordanfernald.com.