Patricia Ann Benjamin, age 84, passed away on September 7, 2025; 43 years to the date of the passing of her beloved husband, Adam Benjamin, Jr. (U.S. Rep., Ind.). She was Irish, with wavy auburn hair, hazel eyes, and ivory skin. A petite beauty, she was also intelligent, hard-working, loyal, generous, stubborn, witty, feisty, supportive, joyful, loving, and full of grace, all at the same time.

She is preceded in death by her daughter, Amy Benjamin; parents, William and Mary (Lesenyie) Sullivan; brothers, William (Carol) Sullivan, James (Joanne) Sullivan, Roger (Linda) Sullivan; sister, Rosemary Sullivan; father and mother-in-law, Adam Sr. and Margaret (Marjanian) Benjamin; brothers-in-law, Myron (Sharyn) Benjamin, Samson (Jeanne) Benjamin, Daniel (Marsha) Benjamin; and sister-in-law, Lillia (Jake) Arzumanian.

Patricia’s memory will forever be cherished by her surviving children, Adam Benjamin III, Alison (Michael) Benjamin, and Arianne (Timothy) Suprenant; grandchildren, Daniel Suprenant, Matthew Suprenant, and McCain Benjamin; sister, Catherine (Michael) Goodson; brother-in-law, Samuel (Maria) Benjamin; sister-in-law, Leona (Johnson) Kelaita; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Patricia began her life in Crown Point on a small farm not far from the center of town where food was obtained from growing your own crops, trading surplus with neighbors, and raising the chickens that pecked at her hands when she fed them. She was about eight years old when her own mother died after which she and her siblings were sent to an orphanage for care.

When it was time to leave the orphanage, Patricia relocated to Gary, worked as a teller for Gary National Bank, modeled clothes for a downtown department store, and attended school at Indiana University Northwest. While a close friend had long wanted to introduce her to a man named Adam, the two didn’t meet until they ran into each other at a holiday party thrown by the Gary Young Democrats. That chance meeting led to long walks, shows and dinners, sporting events, political functions (as he was running in his first race for state legislator at the time), and eventually family introductions. As she later recalled: when I met your father, I just knew he was the one and believed God put the two of us together. It was easy to believe such was true given the joy and love that shined in their eyes every time they caught each other’s gaze. Six months later, on July 30,1966, they married in front of hundreds of family members and guests.

As a newly married woman, Patricia was supposed to know how to cook. The problem was that she really didn’t know how. But failing at anything was never her style, so she picked up the Betty Crocker cookbook and became a self-taught cook. It wasn’t long before she was able to cook by sight, smell, and touch without the need for measuring cups or spoons. She was known for her roasted lamb, rice with raisins, corned beef and cabbage, and of course her world-famous potato salad.

Patricia was her husband’s biggest supporter, at home, in life, and in his professional career. She ran their home, took the lead in raising their children, and still found time to work tirelessly on all his political campaigns (state and federal).

The years following our father’s death were filled with dedications and memorials, and our mother, determined to honor and preserve his legacy, and despite her own need to mourn, accepted each invitation. Her final step before leaving public life was to ensure that her husband’s congressional seat went to someone worthy of the task, in her mind: a person who would continue with the projects that were left unfinished and also shared his belief that the true work of the office was to represent people to the best of his ability without any thought of personal gain or glory. Patricia believed her husband’s longtime associate, Pete Visclosky, fulfilled those requirements, gave her endorsement, attended and spoke at campaign events, and walked across the entire district knocking on doors, speaking with people, and handing out fliers.

After her work was done, she retreated from public life. She focused on her children; made coffee every morning for her neighborhood friends; returned to college to study mathematics and photography; and planted a backyard garden where she spent her time in peaceful quiet, thinking of her husband, and tending to hundreds of varieties of iris, lilies, liatris, orchids, coneflowers, columbines, oriental poppies, and trumpet vines. Her presence lives throughout the neighborhood as almost every home displays some sort of flower or plant that originated from her garden.

In later years, on learning she was going to be a grandmother, Patricia voiced concern that she was too young for such a role. But those concerns vanished the second that she cradled her first grandson in her arms, and she was ultimately blessed with three grandsons, each special in their own way. She loved, adored, and pampered them all.

Patricia will be laid to rest alongside her husband, Adam Jr., at the family burial plot in Calumet Park Cemetery. While there are no words to describe the loss felt by those who loved her, comfort is found in knowing that she is once again able to feel the warm embrace of her beloved husband and hold her beautiful baby girl in her arms.