Patty Sullivan was born in Detroit, Michigan, and raised in Tucson where she attended the University of Arizona. During a summer spent on Cape Cod, she met her husband, Tom Sullivan, a Harvard student at the time, who was playing piano, singing, and enchanting local restaurant patrons who included Betty White and her husband, Allen Ludden, in town for summer stock. They became mentors and beloved lifetime friends. Their loving marriage inspired Tom and Patty who have been married for fifty-three years and have two grown children, Blythe and Tom Jr. (Sully).

While raising their family, Patty traveled with Tom for his music concerts and television appearances as well as thousands of motivational speaking engagements across the country. She serves her community in many capacities. Most important to Patty is the organization she founded to support the Blind Children’s Center of Los Angeles, which has more than ten million dollars to date. Equally important is her long-time commitment to Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Centers. As a trustee emeritus she continues to serve on their Ministry Board and Mission Community Health Committee. 

Patty has had a wonderfully full life with Tom, Blythe, and Tom Jr., all of whom have been blessed by their incredibly close relationship with the remarkable Betty White, her mentor and surrogate mother/Gram III, prompting her to write this loving tribute, Betty White’s Pearls of Wisdom: Life Lessons from a Beloved American Treasure.