Obituary
Patricia Reid
Patricia Reid, Who Fell in Love With the Bread Man, Was 90
By Jon Symons Aug. 26, 2026
Patricia Ann Reid, who worked as the head cook at the Provincetown Veterans Memorial Elementary School for three decades, died at her home in Eastham on Aug. 16, 2026. She was 90.
Patricia Reid in an undated photo.
Pat was born in Washington, D.C. on Aug. 22, 1935, the middle child of Frank and Cecelia Frost. Frank was in the Navy, and the family moved often, as he was stationed in California, Virginia, Maine, and, for a short time, at the former North Truro Air Force Station.
“My mom used to say it was hard for her to keep friends because they were moving around all the time,” said her daughter Dawna. Growing up, Pat was a tomboy, “always climbing things, scraping her knees, getting in trouble,” according to Dawna.
After high school, Pat worked briefly as a secretary at the Pentagon.
Her mother’s family was from Provincetown, where she eventually settled and started a family. Two early marriages ended in divorce, leaving Pat a single working mom raising four daughters.
In the mid-1970s, while working at the elementary school, she met Richard Turner, who was known as “the Bunny Bread Man” for the Nissen Baking Company, serving restaurants and schools on the Outer Cape. Over deliveries of white bread and hot dog and hamburger rolls, love bloomed. Although they never married, Pat and Dick were together for 42 years.
The couple settled in a 200-year-old house in Truro that needed constant upkeep. “My mom was always working on the house,” said Dawna. “She liked to paint and wallpaper, and she even did some carpentry and shingling. She used a Sawzall with the best of them.”
Pat attended the Christian Union Church in North Truro, where she is remembered for being always generous with a hug and a smile. She volunteered at the church’s thrift shed and bake sales and worked as an usher.
Pat loved animals, especially dogs and cats, and was always taking in strays.
Lily Horton, one of Pat’s nine grandchildren, spent a lot of time at the old house in Truro and recalls a tire swing, trips for ice cream, board games, and card games. Cooking with Pat was a beloved activity. “One of my favorite recipes she taught me is kale soup with linguiça,” said Lily. “Whenever my friends aren’t feeling well, I bring them a pot of that soup.”
When Dick died in 2019, Pat sold the Truro house and moved next door to Dawna and her family in Eastham.
Her family remembers Pat as always encouraging and upbeat. “I get that trait from her,” said Dawna. “If you’re not feeling well, you turn it around. She was always there for me. She left a big hole. It’s going to be tough moving forward without her.”
Pat is survived by her sister, Barbara Watts, of Eastham, and daughters Dawna and husband Johnny Newman of Eastham, Wanda (Collins) Dickinson of North Andover, Lisa Reid of Seekonk, and Linda and husband Jimmy Cocozza of Cranston, R.I. She is also survived by nine grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
Pat was predeceased by her brother, Harry Frost, who was known as Jack.
A memorial service was held on Aug. 22. In lieu of flowers, donations may go to the Christian Union Church in North Truro.
Posted online on August 26, 2026
Published in Provincetown Independent