Patricia A. “Patti” Bonner (nee Novielli), a lifelong resident of Ridley Park died on November 15, 2024 at Arista Care at Meadow Springs. Born in Darby, she was the daughter of the late Domenic and Helen Cooney Novielli.
Patti was a graduate of Cardinal O’Hara High School, class of 1975 and received a bachelor’s degree from West Chester University in 1979. Patti was an amazing, caring, and gifted educator in the Catholic school system for 43 years. She started at the old St.
Roberts School, and after some time off after the birth of her 3 children, subbed at various schools throughout the county until she found a home at Notre Dame de Lourdes in 1993. She had few core beliefs as a teacher, opting to keep it simple. At the core of these beliefs was her love of the classroom dynamic with the teacher commanding the room from anywhere in the room.
She believed she had one main function, and that was simply to teach – all day and every day. The other core belief that she possessed was that good teachers taught not only from the book but from the heart, truly believing that if compassion did not lie in the heart of the teacher, that it be not found in the classroom. A true measure of the significance of her impact on her students could be seen year after year when former students would return to heap praise upon her for the positive impact she had on their lives.
Her husband always told her that she may never get rich from teaching, but these testimonials were worth their.