Dr. Patricia Bryan Wilber

Dr. Patricia Bryan Wilber died peacefully in her Atlanta home on February 9th 2020, surrounded and supported by her four loving children.

She was born on March 18th, 1927, in Athens Ga to Malcolm Honore Bryan and Nan Coghlan Bryan. Pat, as she liked to be called, moved with her family to Atlanta in 1938. She graduated from Christ the King School in 1945 then went on to earn a degree in chemistry from Trinity College in Washington DC. In 1948 she was accepted into Harvard Medical School and was one of only 6 women to graduate in the class of 1952. It was at Harvard that she met her husband of 58 years, Dr. Joseph A. Wilber.

After spending a year living in Oxford England, she and Joe moved back to Atlanta where she went to work in several Public Heath related areas. She served for many years as the Executive Director of the Atlanta Red Cross, she worked doing cardiology research at Grady Memorial Hospital, and she worked in the Georgia Disability Adjudication Services Agency. She and Joe were an early dual career couple, and she managed this very successful career while also raising a family of 4 children.

As a child, Pat was introduced to the beauty of the North Georgia mountains and spent her childhood summers at Tate Mountain, where her parents had a small cabin. Pat was at heart a scientist and naturalist, and she enjoyed learning about the birds, the snakes, the trees, the wildflowers and how the temperature of the lake fluctuated over the course of a year. She and Joe eventually retired at Tate and for many years enjoyed gardening, cooking, and entertaining friends. Time spent at Tate with them was dearly cherished by their kids and grandkids. In 2002, Pat and Joe went back to work as volunteers in The Good Samaritan Health Care Clinic in Jasper Ga. Good Samaritan was the result of the hard work and generosity of many volunteers and had the goal of providing medical care for the indigent and uninsured. Pat and Joe were regular volunteers at the clinic for many years. In February of 2011 Pat and Joe moved from their home at Tate Mountain back to Atlanta to be closer to their children.

Pat was a beautiful, gracious and modest woman and she preferred to be with family and close friends and to stay close to home. She was exceptionally intelligent and a warm and wonderful mother to her children. Many people sought her out, even as she reached old age, to get her advice and council on all manner of things.

Pat was preceded in death by her husband Joe. She is survived by her children Joe Wilber (Donna), Dr. Martha Wilber (Jay), John Wilber (Betsy) and Bryan Wilber (Tessa) and 6 grandchildren: James, Ned, Joseph, Carol, Henry and Martha, all of Atlanta.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made to The Good Samaritan Health and Wellness Center,175 Samaritan Dr. Jasper Ga. 30143