Patricia "Patti" Dale Otten

Patricia “Patti” Dale Otten, 89, of Gloucester, NC, died at home in hospice care with family by her side on Saturday, March 9, 2024. 

A funeral service will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 20th at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 215 Ann St., in Beaufort, North Carolina. Her ashes will be buried in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, at a later date

Patti moved in 2010 to Carteret County, NC, from New Jersey where she’d lived most of her life. Born in 1935 to Harry R. and Thelma Seabrook Barber, Patti grew up in rural South Jersey. As a young girl, Patti enjoyed the camaraderie of many cousins her age. She loved sports and played on lots of school teams. 

While a student at Centenary College (now University), in Hackettstown, NJ, she met and fell in love with Bob Otten, a Lafayette College student. After graduation, Bob entered the US Army. On a weekend visit at Ft. Benning, GA, the two married – a marriage that lasted 51 years until Bob’s death in 2006. After Ft. Benning, the Army sent Bob and Patti to Tacoma, Washington, and then Fairbanks, Alaska. Patti found the high-latitude environment fascinating and had fond memories of life in Alaska. After his military service, Bob enrolled in law school. After law school, the two settled in Monmouth County, NJ, Bob practiced law in Red Bank, and they lived in Shrewsbury and then Little Silver. They raised two children there and were active members of Red Bank United Methodist Church. They had a big circle of close friends, including some of Patti’s cousins, with whom they often spent holidays and vacations. They loved to go on group family trips near and far, on canoe trips around the Mid-Atlantic region, on houseboat adventures on the St. Lawrence River and Lake Powell in Arizona, to the beaches of the Jersey shore, to the mountains out west, or to ski slopes in Europe. Patti was a skillful organizer of these activities and always loved traveling. Even with her health in decline in recent years, she was eager to travel with her granddaughter, Emily, and they took memorable trips to London, Rome, Los Angeles and Santa Barbara before her health prevented further travel. 

A constant through Patti’s life was her enjoyment of reading, gardening, biking, hiking, skiing, swimming, playing tennis and walking. She loved being outdoors, and she loved the companionship of her dogs, especially her last dog, a dear little Schi Tzu named Manny.

In addition to her father, Harry R. Barber, and mother, Thelma S. Sidur, Patti was preceded in death by her stepfather Robert A. Sidur; husband, Robert H. Otten; daughter, Dale K. Otten; son, Gregory R. Otten; and brother, Richard T. Barber. 

She is survived by her beloved granddaughter, Emily Duckworth, of Greenville, SC; sister, Charlotte Rowe of Marion, OH; sisters-in-law, Carolyn Daniel of St. Louis, MO, and Elaine Barber of Gloucester, NC; and many nieces and nephews.

The family thanks caregivers Janie Salter, Mariah Gillikin and Marla Lawrence for their tender, loving care of Patti during her last year, and Patti’s caregiver Mayra Guthrie who became a friend and companion in Patti’s last years. 

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 215 Ann St., Beaufort, NC 28516, or to a charity of one’s choice. 

Family and friends are welcome to submit online condolences at www.mundenfuneralhome.net.

Arrangements by Munden Funeral Home & Crematory in Morehead City, NC.