Diana Elizabeth Patterson, a retired secretary who had worked at the World Bank and was the wife of radio personality Ted Patterson, died of a stroke and cancer complications Friday at Greater Baltimore Medical Center. The Anneslie resident was 61.
Born Diana Elizabeth Gillette in a London suburb, she worked in Zurich, Switzerland, as a German-speaking secretary. She sailed to the United States on the maiden voyage of the Queen Elizabeth II in 1969 and worked at the World Bank in Washington.
She met her future husband, who was then an Army lieutenant and Armed Forces Radio sportscaster, at a party at the Watergate Hotel in Washington in 1970. They married in 1971 in England.
She then worked at the British consulate in Boston and moved to Baltimore in 1973 when her husband became host of a sports talk show on WBAL radio.
"She was a great partner," her husband said. "She had a great interest in other people. She was remarkable for her dedication to her children and her old-fashioned demeanor. She had a great personality."
She did secretarial work at Vernon Craggs, a tobacco machinery broker in downtown Baltimore. She later became a nanny for local families.
A memorial Mass will be offered 10 a.m. Saturday at St. Pius X Roman Catholic Church, 6428 York Road, where she was a member.
In addition to her husband, survivors include a son, Michael Theodore Patterson of Baltimore; a daughter, Clare Elizabeth Patterson of Charlottesville, Va.; and a brother, Michael Gillette of Wimbledon, England.