Patty is the one who brings the tray of sandwiches to Phil's club on Mondays
and brings treats to the other clubs when she and husband John attend. She
loves to cook and enjoys contributing to an afternoon of bridge and meeting her
friends. She and John help with the clean-up after games. Patty was
editor of the front page of the Bridge News. She authored many profiles
and wrote several outstanding articles for the newsletter.
Patty was born in Oberlin, Ohio, to a local dairyman and his wife. Her
family never played card games, preferring to work instead. Patty played
the cello at a young age, and she went on to major in cello at Kansas University
after her family moved to Kansas City. It was at KU where she met and
married John in 1954.
Three baby daughters followed their marriage. When their youngest
daughter was four years old, Patty went back to college at the University of
Missouri at Kansas City, earning her degree in elementary education. She
taught pre-school, first and third grade for ten years. Later she was a
bank teller and a secretary in San Francisco Bay Area.
The family moved several times. The daughters married and two of them had
children. John and Patty retired to the Rogue Valley in 1988, to be near her
mother and father. John taught math part-time at Southern Oregon
University, tutored at RCC, and consulted in Quality Assurance, while Patty went
into business with her mother designing and making clothes for an Ashland store
(Elizabeth-Of-Course) for seven years. Artwork using fabrics
and other art materials is a passion of hers. She takes daily two-to-five mile
hikes with her 65-pound Husky companion, Honey.
John and Patty played bridge on and off through their work life and into
retirement. The partnership has been smooth because they decided, early
on, not to take bridge too seriously. They try, almost successfully, not to
discuss bridge while a game is on-going, or on the way home after a game. The
Duggans have played Simplified Precision since the early 1970's. John and
Patty became Life Masters and Bronze Life Masters at the same time, winning
their gold in the Pairs events at regional and national tournaments.
Patty is grateful for the many members and directors who give so tirelessly
of their time and talents to make our bridge organization thrive. She
states, "The social advantages of meeting a group of friends for a competitive
game of bridge are primary for me. It is also fun to win once in awhile."
Thanks, Patty.
