Patricia "Pat" McInerney Kesling, 71, of Bethlehem, died June 13, 2015, after a long illness.

Born in Oakland, Calif., she was a daughter of the late Francis Norman McInerney and Janet Knowlton McInerney.

She attended Westfield HS and West Virginia University.

She began in journalism with the Morgantown Dominion Post in West Virgina. She was the first female news reporter with The Morning Call, where she also wrote a column under the pseudonym Kay Raywick. She was a features editor and a party line social columnist for The Globe Times and reported regional news for The New York Times' Northeast Journal.

She was an ombudsman for City of Bethlehem Mayor Gordon B. Mowrer and was in constituent services for State Representative T.J. Rooney. In 1994, she became Musikfest's first director of development and was involved with the building of, program funding and development of the Banana Factory Arts and Education Center, Club ArtsQuest, Musikfest membership and the Banana Factory Special Events Committee. She retired from ArtsQuest in 2010.

She was on the boards and committees of numerous local organizations. She was a member of the Junior League of the Lehigh Valley, where she was chairperson of the Turning Point II Committee to build a Northampton County shelter. She was named the Junior League 1990 outstanding volunteer of the year and the Bethlehem YWCA outstanding woman of the year.

She is survived by a son, Rich and his wife Laurie Teter of Bethlehem; a daughter, Nancy and her husband Alistair Westwood, of Houston, Texas; and three grandchildren, Liam, Julia and Natalie Westwood, all of Houston, Texas; a sister, Sally and her husband Jim Higgins of Littleton, Colo.; a brother, Bob and his wife Nicole McInerney of Whitehouse, N.J.; four nieces, Shannon and her husband Mike Sharkey, Paige and her husband Chris Siemers of Colo., and Erren and Rachel McInerney of N.J.; a nephew, U.S. Army Capt. Patrick Higgins, in Afghanistan; two great-nieces; and one great-nephew.

A public celebration of life will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Aug. 1 in the Musikfest Cafe, Arts Quest Center, SteelStacks, 101 Founders Way.

Contirbutions may be made to the Cops 'n' Kids Children's Literacy Program of the Quota International Bethlehem Charitable Trust, c/o L.V. Cops 'n' Kids, P.O. Box 1906, Bethlehem, PA 18016-1906; or to the Boutique at the Rink of the American Cancer Society, c/o Boutique at the Rink, P.O. Box 1231, Bethlehem, PA 18016.

Arrangements were made by the Pearson Funeral Home Inc., 1901 Linden St.