Pamela Dean Whisner

Pamela Dean Whisner

77 Years old, Long Beach California

Born July 10, 1946, Died Nov 4, 2023.

Pam was so many things to so many people.  She was a caring wife to her husband, John, a wonderful mother to Rebecca and Sean, a doting grandmother to Sydney and Kate, and a role model teacher. All of this was so evident with the outpouring of love and visits in her final weeks, from colleagues, former students, family, and friends, as she fought her short battle with Merkel cell cancer.

Pamela was born in 1946 at Seaside Hospital in Long Beach. She and her three younger siblings, were “Navy brats”, who experienced living in Georgia, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Alaska, before Pam finished up her senior year of high school in Concord, California. Her parents, Harold and Rae Annette McCarthy, and siblings Michael, John and Cheryl, made the Bay area their home.

Love for her Aunts Helen and Bernice, brought Pam back to Long Beach. While living with roommates and having a blast in Belmont Shore, at the age of 22, she began teaching at Mary Star of the Sea, in San Pedro, CA. She went on to teach at Holy Trinity in San Pedro and St. Joseph in Long Beach, before spending almost 30 years as a math and science teacher at Stephens Middle School, with Long Beach Unified School District.

Pam loved sports and in her younger days, she coached basketball, softball and volleyball. In 1976, she took her Mary Star basketball team to the CIF championship, and was named CIF coach of the year - an award she was always proud of. When Rebecca and Sean were growing up, you’d find Pam managing the Bobby Sox softball team, keeping score for Little League, and even coaching the school cheer team. Most recently, and ran the clock and kept the score for her middle school’s basketball teams. She never missed watching Notre Dame football, and always kept up with the Angels. But most of all, she loved to watch her granddaughters, Sydney and Kate, play soccer and lacrosse. From peewee to high school, her greatest joy was to cheer them on at their games.

As a teacher, Pam was one of the first teachers to arrive at school. In the mornings, her door was always open, as she was known for helping the other teachers prepare for the day or catching up with her fellow staff. She’d stay late to help her students who needed the extra support, bring supplies for the kids who needed them, and during COVID, she even paid her kids to log in to their Zoom math class! She made teaching and learning fun, while always holding her students to high standards. She loved doing experiments in science class, and using manipulatives and real world problems in her math class. She was data driven, and worked hard to make sure her students were successful. She finally retired in 2021, with an amazing 52-year career in education! Her influence on other teachers, and the countless students that came through her classroom is immeasurable.

In retirement, Pam loved games that included math. She enjoyed cribbage with her family, Bunco with her group who’ve been playing for 45 years, Bingo at the Elks Lodge, and her daily Wordle and iPad games. She loved to go to the beach, read, and watch reality TV shows. But her favorite retirement activity of all, was ubering her granddaughters around Long Beach, as she’d pick them up from school and take them home, to practice, or the nail salon.  She treasured her time as a grandma.

Pam will be greatly missed by her family and friends. She is preceded in death by her husband, John Whisner, who passed away in 1998. She is survived by her son, Sean Whisner, daughter, Rebecca Fast, son-in-law, John Fast, and beloved granddaughters, Sydney and Kate. Her funeral will be held at Mary Star of the Sea in San Pedro on November 21, at 10:30am.