January 16, 2025, the board of directors of Chico Evening Republican Women announced an award that we will be giving annually from this point forward:  The CERW Woman of the Year Award.  We’ve been planning behind the scenes and have chosen someone who is from Chico and has been involved for years in a variety of service organizations and projects.  Our first recipient is a member of Chico Evening Republican Women, she is a hard worker, a loving person, and she makes some delicious cakes.  Can anyone guess who we’re talking about?

Patsy Stile was born in Willows and raised in Chico.  She came from a nice set of parents who were very hard-working people, so she comes by her values from a good family.  Her father was a mechanic, and her mother worked at Continental Nut.

Patsy was in Rainbow Girls and was popular in school.  Went to Chico High and graduated with the class of 1966.  She attended Butte College.  She is a member of Omega Nu Sorority, California Women for Ag, and was on the Board of the Fairgrounds, once serving as President, as well as SIRS.  She traveled quite a bit for the various farm groups in our area, and she even went to Australia to a convention for California Women for Ag!

A bookkeeper for Ban Goff, Patsy then went on to work for S&S Enterprises for years – a company owned by her husband, Walter Stile.  Patsy was married for 45 years to Walt, a farmer who grew almonds and prunes in a successful family business that was later turned over to their sons.  The couple also bought and sold real estate and were very successful with that endeavor.  She was a wonderful wife to Walt and cared for him until he passed away in 2024.

She has one daughter, Tracy, four grandchildren, and through her marriage to Walter, who had one Son, Patsy has two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren, and one on the way.

Patsy also has a terrific sister, Loya Merlo, who attended the meeting and dinner.  Loya told me that Patsy is a great sister, a great aunt, who loves all of her nieces and nephews.  Loya and Tracy were very happy and proud of Patsy, who has been such an inspiration and a motivator in their family all these years.  Our winner of the very first Woman of the Year Award, Mrs. Patsy Stile!