Robert Patterson Andrews
August 7, 1935 ~ June 29, 2024
Resided in:
Rye, New Hampshire
Colonel Robert "Pat" Patterson Andrews, M.D., of Rye, New Hampshire, passed away at Exeter Hospital in the early morning of June 29, 2024 at the age of 88. He will be most remembered for his love of family and kindness to all.
Born at Newton Hospital on August 7, 1935, and raised in Quincy, Massachusetts, Pat was the son of George Robert Andrews of Sanford, Maine and Helen Brown Babcock of Cambridge, Massachusetts. He graduated from Thayer Academy in Braintree, Massachusetts and Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, where he earned an A.B. degree in Political Science. He then attended Tufts University School of Medicine, graduating with his M.D in 1963.
Pat completed a rotating internship and a Radiology residency at Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine, before beginning his practice in Bangor, Maine, in 1967. He was a founding member of Andrews Lynch & Field PA, which later merged to form Spectrum Medical Group in 1996. Pat practiced radiology for 33 years in Bangor and Dover-Foxcroft, retiring in 2000. He continued to work locum tenens from 2000 until 2008, primarily in Cooperstown, New York.
A specialist in breast cancer diagnosis, Pat founded the Rosen Breast Diagnostic Center at St. Joseph Hospital in Bangor in 1978. He was board certified in Radiology and Nuclear Medicine and served as Chief Radiologist at both St. Joseph Hospital in Bangor and Mayo Regional Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft. He also established the associate degree program in Radiology Technology at Eastern Maine Technical College, where he served as program chairman for 22 years.
Colonel Andrews had a distinguished military career, spanning 33 years of reserve obligation. He served active duty as a radarman in the US Navy aboard the USS CK Bronson and as a flight surgeon in the Maine Air National Guard refueling F-16 fighter jets in flight. He participated in the first Gulf War and the Bosnia Herzegovina Conflict, amassing over 1500 hours as a KC-135 Tanker crew member. He was a life member of the DAV of America, retiring as the State Air Surgeon of Maine and receiving several medals, including the Air Medal for his service.
Pat was deeply involved in his community, serving on the Newburgh Fire Department, the board of the Bangor Symphony Orchestra, as chairman of the Newburgh Planning Board, as a member of Senator William Cohen’s Republican advisory board, and as President of the Sugarloaf Ski Club & Ski Foundation. He played a key role in founding Carrabassett Valley Academy and was an emeritus member of the Eastern Maine Medical Hospital staff.
Airplanes were Pat’s greatest passion. Over his lifetime, he owned several small aircraft for pleasure and travel. As an enthusiastic and experienced pilot, Pat flew numerous charitable missions for the Environmental Air Force, LightHawk Conservation, and the Nature Conservancy. He also loved skiing, particularly at Sugarloaf Ski Resort in Carrabassett Valley, Maine, where he built a family camp. Pat spent countless hours on the slopes, eagerly tracking and reporting his “vertical feet” to share with his many friends and ski partners.
Pat is survived by his loving and devoted wife of 18 years, Debra A. Barrett Andrews. His children, Beth Andrews and partner Jeff Bennert of Cumberland, Maine, Amy Buzzi and husband Daniel of North Kingstown, Rhode Island, Jeff Andrews and wife Julie of Denver, Colorado, stepdaughter Kristin Barrett of Denver, Colorado, brother-in-law Bruce Harrison of Sanford, Maine, and former spouse Bunny Thibodeau Andrews of Presque Isle, Maine. As he often claimed, Pat’s immortality lies with his six cherished grandchildren: Lauren and Kyle Lamberson, Abby and Adam Brewer, and Sebastian and Audrey Andrews. He was predeceased by spouse Polly Davis Andrews, parents George and Helen Andrews, and brothers King and Gary Andrews.
Visitation will be at the Carll-Heald and Black Funeral Home, Friday October 11 from 10:00 am to 12 noon. His cremated remains will be laid to rest with military honors in the Maine Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Springvale, Maine on Friday October 11 at 1:00 pm.
Donations in Pat’s memory can be made to Tufts University School of Medicine, 145 Harrison Ave., Boston, MA 02111, and/or Disabled American Veterans, P.O. Box 14301, Cincinnati, OH 45250.
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Lisa and I wish to express our sorrow for the loss of your beloved husband, father and friend. We only knew Pat for a short time of our lives but what a good time we had together.
Very few people in life are as open, friendly and giving or their life as Pat was.
We met on a whim. Pat was a Locums radiologist for us in Cooperstown NY at the time. My friend and I were going skiing, and he expressed an interest yet did not have his equipment. I offered up my sons and he readily accepted. Though the boots were too large, and his feet slipped in them, the poles and skis too long, we had a marvelous time and a friendship among us was started.
We had many ski trips, vacations and flying times together.
Pat will be missed by many and in many ways but those who loved him will miss him the most. Our condolences to you.
Dan and Lisa Wenck