Patricia Owens "Pat" Fordice (November 27, 1935 – July 12, 2007) was the First Lady

First Lady

First Lady or First Gentlemanis the unofficial title used in some countries for the spouse of an elected head of state.It is not normally used to refer to the spouse or partner of a prime minister; the husband or wife of the British Prime Minister is usually informally referred to as prime...

 of Mississippi

Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...

 from 1992 until 1999 as the wife of Governor Kirk Fordice

Kirk Fordice

Daniel Kirkwood "Kirk" Fordice, Jr. was a politician from the US state of Mississippi. He was the 61st Governor of Mississippi from January 14, 1992, until January 11, 2000.-Biography:...

. They later divorced, after 44 years of marriage on December 9 1999.

She was referred to as the "Eternal First Lady" and received numerous awards for her activities both during her husband's tenure as governor and after it ended. The Mississippi State Legislature awarded her a formal recognition during the 1999 Regular Session.

Following the divorce her ex-husband Kirk remarried in 2000 only to divorce in 2003. Kirk then became sick with cancer shortly after and Pat was at his side when he died at the age of 70 in 2004.

In November 2005, Pat Fordice resigned as the city of Jackson's interim head of Human and Cultural Services. At the time, Fordice said the full-time job was more demanding than she believed she could handle. Pat Fordice was also a co-host of the program "Woman to Woman" with Juanita Sims Doty on Mississippi Public Broadcasting

Mississippi Public Broadcasting

Mississippi Public Broadcasting is the public broadcasting state network in Mississippi, United States. It is owned by the Mississippi Authority for Educational Television, an agency of the Mississippi state government that holds the licenses for all of the PBS and NPR member stations in the...

. She also appeared in a series of commercials for Keep Mississippi Beautiful and the Mississippi Department of Transportation as part of its anti-littering campaign.

Pat Fordice died of cancer

Cancer

Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

 in Jackson, Mississippi

Jackson, Mississippi

Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...

, aged 71.

Encomium

• "Pat Fordice served as Mississippi's first lady with grace and refinement. Her unwavering strength encouraged Mississippians to persevere during difficult circumstances. Regal yet approachable, she possessed a natural Southern elegance that transcended her term and endeared her to our hearts." (U.S. Rep. Chip Pickering
  Chip Pickering
  "Charles Willis Pickering" redirects here. For this former congressman's father, see Charles W. Pickering.Charles Willis "Chip" Pickering, Jr. is a politician in the U.S. state of Mississippi. He represented as a Republican in the United States House of Representatives...
  
  ; http://www.wapt.com/news/13669058/detail.html).