Obituary of Janet Margaret Patterson
Janet Margaret (O’Brien) Patterson, 71, of Lower Sackville passed away on October 9, 2025. Born in Halifax on April 10, 1954, she was a daughter of Lloyd and Doris (MacDonald) O’Brien.
She lived her early life in Fairview where she attended Central Armdale (Burton Ettinger) Elementary, Armdale Junior High and Halifax West High School. She took her secretarial course at Queen Elizabeth High School. Janet loved horses. She enjoyed watching the sulky races and attending auctions with her father.
Janet met her best friend of 63 years, Sandra (Greeno) Doney, when she was 8 and Sandra was 9. Janet’s family travelled often and Sandra joined them on trips to Cape Breton, PEI, and Maine. Janet would join Sandra’s family at their cottage in East Linden, Cumberland County, spending many a summer together. Janet also enjoyed visiting her Aunt Evelyn (“Eddie”) and Uncle William (“Bill”) Beazley in Montreal.
Janet married Joseph Frederick (“Fred”) Patterson in Halifax in 1976 and moved to Alberta where they owned a florist shop. She became homesick and her father was in poor health, so they moved back to Nova Scotia after two years. They built a house in Dartmouth and started their family. A year after her father’s passing, they moved in with her mother. After having their third child, they moved to Enfield and built a house.
Many residents of East Hants and neighbouring communities came to know her warm and playful personality over two decades of waitressing at the Enfield Irving Big Stop. She enjoyed crafting like toll painting, sewing, and creating flower arrangements. Janet would often take her family on summer vacations to visit her Aunt Eddie and Uncle Bill at their new home in Lower Montague, Prince Edward Island.
Before retiring, she worked at Avery’s Farm Market in Elmsdale where she loved to create a Christmas village display each year. She was an avid bargain hunter and she was good at it. She had a passion for rescue animals, actively supporting organizations and welcoming her beloved dogs (Sasha, Moses, and Abbie) and cats (Ravyn and Willow) into her home. Janet was incredibly compassionate, always wanting to help people in her community and she worked with other volunteers to welcome a refugee family to Elmsdale, supporting them every way she could.
Though Janet had been managing health difficulties for years, her passing came suddenly and unexpectedly. Janet lived with her children for 8 years before she passed and was able to live with her grandchildren for a year and a half during that time.
Janet was predeceased by her sister Joan; her husband Fred; and her parents Lloyd and Doris. She is survived by children Joel (Mariko), Greg (Jamie), Kate (Charlie), and Jesse; grandchildren Finley and Ophelia; nephew Kevin; nieces Krista and Andrea; and her chosen family, best friend Sandra (Rob).
A private service will be held at a later date. Memorial donations may be made to Sympathetic Ear Animal Rescue and Home To Stay Dog Rescue.