We’re celebrating the life of N Patricia Armstrong (Snider), who passed away peacefully in Mississauga with family at her side on August 4, 2026 at the age 97. She is preceded in death by her former husband Max, and children Paula, Teresa and Donna. She is survived by children Mike (Tracey), Terri (Jim), April (Manny), Karen (Fred), and Chris (Sue), plus 12 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.
Pat was born in Toronto in 1929 and grew up at the Beach. Her mom Georgina was a secretary, and her dad Duncan Snider played drums for Luigi Romanelli’s orchestra. Because she was an only child, Pat loved group activities like choir and theater. She attended classes at Balmy Beach School and Malvern Collegiate. Summers were spent at the Snider family cottage in Gravenhurst.
Pat played the organ at her local church and although she sang with the choir, she was also a solo favourite at weddings and funerals. She was an expert seamstress and sewed many of her own suits and dresses.
After completing a secretarial course, Pat began her career at the Bank of Montreal in downtown Toronto until her marriage to her former husband Max. The growing family moved to Winnipeg in 1966. Pat re-entered the workforce at a Catholic pastoral center, with later jobs at Lions Manor and the Federal Government. She retired from Statistics Canada in 1992 and returned to live in Toronto.
With her new-found leisure time, Pat revived her early interest in writing by joining the Canadian Author’s Association. Later, she and a fellow-author formed a new writers’ group called the Writers and Editors Network (WEN) which is still in operation today. Pat’s short story “Johann and the Quakers” was published in WEN’s short story anthology “Seeing Red” in 2008.
Pat had a longstanding interest in genealogy, inspired by her uncle Elgin’s voluminous work on Snider family history. Her exhaustive research resulted in her self-published book “Geneamania” – a how-to manual about finding one’s family roots.
Despite her dedication to research and writing activities, Pat also indulged her interest in the arts. She was a long-time season-ticket holder at Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and frequently attended Shaw Festival productions at Niagara-on-the-Lake.
We want to express our heartfelt gratitude to the staff at AgeCare Wenleigh for the wonderful care Pat received in her final years.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the North Toronto Historical Society, 283 Deloraine Avenue, Toronto, ON, M5M 2B2 in appreciation for their contributions to her genealogy research.