Patricia A. Birks

Patricia Ann Birks of Westhampton Beach died suddenly on Sunday, November 6, 2022 following a brief illness. She was 72.

Patti was born on October 13, 1950 at Patuxent River Naval Base in Maryland to Margaret Elizabeth (nee McCarthy) Birks and Chief Naval Warrant Officer William Rogers Birks. Her early school years were spent in Florida when her father was assigned to Naval Air Station Key West. The Birks family returned to Westhampton Beach when Patti was in the second grade. She was a 1968 graduate of Westhampton Beach Senior High School. 

Prior to her birth, her father was a survivor of the infamous Bataan Death March in the Philippines and a prisoner of war for three and a half years in Japanese POW camps. She was fascinated by both history and genealogy – in particular that of her very own family and her family’s legacy in Westhampton Beach. A history buff since elementary school, she set out to trace her “Rogers” ancestry many years ago with the hopes of simply learning more about her local family history. What she wound up discovering was just how historic and deep her family roots truly were.

During her genealogy searches Patti learned that she was related to prominent landowners in both the United States and England. She was related to the first Protestant martyr in England, bible translator and commentator John Rogers, who was burned at the stake in 1555 in England as a heretic under Queen Mary 1 who was determined to restore Roman Catholicism in England. Additionally, Thomas Rogers Sr., Patti Birks’s 13th-generation grandfather had a daughter Kathrine who married Robert Harvard after the two were introduced by William Shakespeare in Stratford-upon-Avon. Robert and Katherine Harvard gave birth to a son, John, who eventually moved to New England in the spring of 1637, at the age 29. A year and a half later he contracted tuberculosis and died. Upon his death, half of John Harvard’s estate and the whole of his vast library were willed to the new college created by the Massachusetts Bay Colony legislature in 1636.​ The college was the first institute of higher learning in colonial America and was, in honor of its first major benefactor, named Harvard College - now known as Harvard University. Patti was endorsed by The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust in England as being a direct descendant of John Harvard who established this infamous Ivy League institution. Patti flew the Shakespeare Birthplace flag proudly at her front door.

Patti Birks spread the word of her family legacy near and far, reaching out to local historical societies, as well as the archives at Harvard University in Massachusetts and the Harvard House Museum in England. She had been interviewed by the BBC, the South London Press and the Stratford Observer in England, Rome Reports, as well as The Harvard Lampoon, The Southampton Press and Dan’s Papers. Many times she traveled to England to speak of her family history to school groups all throughout England.

Ms. Birks was an avid knitter. Her ancestors were accomplished knitting artisans that originally came from England, Ireland and Scotland. She was taught to knit at the age of 10 by her mother, whose family hailed from Clonakilty, County Cork, Ireland. She would travel the world and book sessions with master knitters worldwide to learn the most intricate of knitting techniques and difficult patterns. Her travels took her to France, Italy, Portugal, Israel and many other nations over the years. You are a lucky person if you ever had the pleasure of being gifted a Patti Birks hand-crafted Sweater, Scarf or Hat from her William Rogers c. 1798 Designs collection.

Patti was an Anglophile par excellence. She was proud of her collection of Paddington Bears, vintage and whimsical London posters, and Shakespeare, Stratford-upon-Avon and Southwark Cathedral Memorabilia. She was happiest driving around in here British Racing Green Mini Cooper with Harvard University decals while John Lennon’s “Imagine” played on the radio.

In her younger days, Patti worked with the Manhattan North Detectives unit of the 20th Precinct in New York cataloguing crime evidence. One of the highest profile cases that she ever worked on was the assassination of legendary musician John Lennon in the 1980s. She worked for Lexus of Southampton for many years in their sales and finance department processing vehicle sales. Additionally, Patti worked as an administrative assistant in the East End real estate profession for over 20 years – first at the Corcoran Group and then Douglas Elliman Real Estate’s Westhampton and Quogue offices, before retiring in 2019. She was always happiest greeting new faces walking through the door or along the front steps and sidewalks of the offices where she worked. The last few years, she had been writing a book, “Tudors to Today: My Journey from 26 High Street Stratford-Upon-Avon The Harvard House”, that she hoped to have published by Red Penguin Books in early 2023.

In addition to her parents, Patti is predeceased by her brother former Suffolk County Police Lieutenant William Birks, nephew Desmin Torres Birks and cousins Linda Platt and Audra Schutte Balcuns. She is survived by her cousin June Elizabeth Rogers of East Hampton and her family, daughter Nancy Sarris, granddaughters Kate Elizabeth LaBelle and Kimberly Royal and great grandchildren Maverick Rogers LaBelle and Evelyn Elizabeth Royal; nephew Ricky Anello and niece Briana Torres Birks; grandniece Laraine Birks and grandnephew Will Birks, as well as many friends and colleagues locally and worldwide. Her beloved fur babies Bono, Tin Tin, Burton & Rigby will miss their beloved mom.

A devote roman catholic, Patti attended mass at the Immaculate Conception Church every morning and prayed the rosary every day for peace in the world. Her birthday, October 13th, was the anniversary of the fifth and final apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary’s appearance to three shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal. Patti believed she and her family owed their whole lives and existence to the protection of Our Lady of Fatima and her miracle of the sun.

A Mass of Resurrection will be held on Thursday, November 10 at 10AM at the Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church, 580 Main Road on Quiogue, Westhampton Beach, New York. Interment will immediately follow at Westhampton Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the Westhampton Historical Society in Patti’s memory.

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