Patricia "Patti" Farley
December 18, 1942 - August 24, 2025
Obituary
Patricia ‘Patti’ L. Farley née Cox, 82, of Fitchburg, WI, passed away on Sunday, August 24th, 2025.
Patti was born on December 18th, 1942, in Madison, WI to Joseph and Eunice Cox.
Patti was a beloved and most cherished Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Great-Grandmother, and Friend to all.
After graduating East High in 1961, Patti married the love of her life Tom Farley on August 29th, 1964. They celebrated 60 years of marriage in 2024. In her 82 years of life, Patti lived to her fullest extent. Patti was a one-of-a-kind soul who dedicated her life in the service of others, including her being an originating volunteer of the Ronald McDonald House Charities, serving for 28 years. She was also an active and well respected member of St. Andrew Catholic Church.
Throughout her years, she had many passions and hobbies. She was an avid Wisconsin Badgers Football, Hockey, and Basketball fan with being a season ticket holder for 53, 35 and 20 years respectively. She was also a Chicago Cubs fan, attending many games at Wrigley Field, and traveling to Spring Trainings in Mesa, AZ. Patti also was an expert bowler, having attended 37 Bowling Nationals and was her bowling league’s secretary for 40 years. Her love of sports continued on in her support of her kids, grandkids and great-grandkids various sporting activities, including over 40 years of West Regent Hockey and 45 years of Dance Recitals.
She spent 19 years working side-by-side with her husband Tom as Owner/Operators of a McDonald’s franchise. She dedicated time to sit on the Blue Line Club Board of Directors for Wisconsin Badgers Hockey. She also enjoyed over 20 years of being a fashion consultant with Doncaster.
Later in life, when retirement came around, Patti enjoyed traveling with her husband Tom to National Parks, Las Vegas, and many other states across the U.S. She loved nothing more than to be surrounded by her large family, and Sunday night dinners were a must. You never had to guess how Patti felt about you, her love was great and she always told you any chance she could. To be known and loved by Patti Farley, was to be known and loved by the brightest and most beautiful soul.
Patti is preceded in death by her Mother Eunice Cox and her Father Joseph Cox. Patti is survived by her husband Tom Farley, her 4 siblings, and her 3 Kids; Erin Combs (Rick Combs), Bret Farley (Stephanie Webster), and Pollee Wodushek (Joe Wodushek). She is also survived by her 5 grandchildren; Jordan Wiecki (Donovan Wiecki), Josephine Kelly (William Kelly), Samantha Wodushek, Zachary Wodushek, and Spencer Wodushek, as well as 3 great-grandchildren, including 1 on the way.
A Memorial Service will be held at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, August 30, 2025 at Ryan Funeral Home Legacy Center, 6728 Mader Dr., Madison, WI, with a Luncheon to follow. Visitations will take place from 4:00-6:00 p.m., Friday, August 29, as well as Saturday, one hour prior to the service, from 10:00-11:00 a.m., at Ryan Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to either Ronald McDonald House Charities - Madison or to UW-Carbone Cancer Center. Thank you.
To view her obituary or leave a memory, please visit: www.ryanfuneralservice.com.
Ryan Funeral Home & Cremation Services
Legacy Center
6728 Mader Drive
608-274-1000
Events
Visitation Today
Fri Aug 29, 2025 @ 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM CDT
Ryan Funeral Home - West • 6728 Mader Dr, Madison, WI 53719
Visitation
Sat Aug 30, 2025 @ 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM CDT
Ryan Funeral Home - West • 6728 Mader Dr, Madison, WI 53719
Memorial Service
Sat Aug 30, 2025 @ 11:00 AM - 11:30 AM CDT
Ryan Funeral Home - West • 6728 Mader Dr, Madison, WI 53719
No photos of Patricia "Patti" have been shared yet.
Memories
MM
Mary McCoy-Wall
Family •
I have come to believe that God's love is weaved through our lives like a thread in a tapestry, of which we only see the unfinished underside. Patti is now next to our Lord in heaven looking at the finished side of His beautiful tapestry of love. He is showing her the thread she wove through the lives she touched. I met her when I was 10 years old and my family was going through a painful crisis. Patti tucked me under her wing and loved me unconditionally for the next 59 years. I babysat for many years for Tom and Patti. One night coming home from bowling she found me sitting in the rocking chair with Bret asleep on my chest. She bent over to stroke sweet Bret's head and whispered "you spoil my kids". I chuckled and whispered back, "you taught me how to spoil them". Patti became my biggest cheerleader and was always just a phone call away when I left Madison to join the military. When I brought my husband home to meet her, she quietly whispered in my ear as we hugged goodbye, "you picked a good one, I'm proud of you". She ended every conversation with "I love you". The very last time I talked to her a few weeks ago she told me how very much she loved me and made me promise I would never forget how much she loved me. I will forever think of her as my OM (other mother). This morning I reread a devotional I have on grief and this made me think of Patti. "Your story will live on in those you loved, not erased, but written deeper. Like a name carved not just in stone but in the fiber of who we've become. Your legacy will remain not in our pain but in our willingness to live. Your memory will endure not only in tears but also in smiles, in wisdom gained and your love that continues. Just as God promised to remember us always, your love, too has that same eternal quality-changing form perhaps, but never ending." Patti's unconditonal love will live on in all of us she had touched. I love you Tom, Erin, Bret, Pollee and all of your beautiful kids.
JR
Julie Fouch Royalton
Friend •
I came to know Patti while bowling at the Village Green Lanes. She was one of the nicest people I've ever met. Also a really good bowler! After several years I left this league and went elsewhere. However, I still kept in touch on FB. Loved her beautiful nails, often prepared for special occasions. She was such a Cubbies fan. They have lost their #1 fan. Family and friends have lost a dear person. My condolences.
GA
Grace Atherton
Friend •
My memories of Patti are full of small moments and big feelings. Admiring her latest manicure (usually Cubs-themed), dishing about our families, and acknowledging that I didn't send her enough pictures of my son to keep her updated (she was right, of course). She felt like a burst of color and light and warmth. I wasn't her blood relative, but she made me feel like I was one of her own. For 20+ years, she was my bonus grandma - how lucky for me! It still hasn't sunk in that I will never gush over her nails again, or see her face light up when I tell her about my toddler's latest interest. Every get-together will be missing something without her there. I will never forget her and I will always miss her.