Pamela Choy, a textile specialist for the fashion industry, an animal lover who was a dedicated volunteer at the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons, and a spirited lover of life, died at home in New York City on May 24 after a heart attack. She was 68.
Kind, playful, and quick to laugh, her warm smile and generous spirit were memorable to all she met. Ms. Choy treated friends as family and stayed closely connected to a diverse group, from her neighbors in the West Village to her friends in East Hampton, where she had a house for more than three decades.
She relished the joys of each place, spending many days at the ocean beach and partaking of all Manhattan had to offer. She was the friend who knew the right restaurant, the most interesting gallery show, and where to shop for everything.
A graduate of City College, Ms. Choy had a successful career in the fashion industry focusing on textile design and procurement, and worked at a number of places from Vogue to Ralph Lauren, the Gap, and Calvin Klein. She traveled the world extensively for work for a time, and always enjoyed discovering new places to vacation.
She had an unerring eye for art and design, and had significant collections of art, particularly photographs. Effortlessly stylish, Ms. Choy was chic in even the most casual of clothes.
Whether it was an evening on the beach for fireworks or a bonfire, dinner out, or an outdoor concert at Duck Creek Farm in Springs, she was often the catalyst for get-togethers, and particularly enjoyed savoring a good meal with friends. She loved to dance, and enjoyed gardening, cultivating a tropical garden at her East Hampton house and attending garden tours.
She made the same one-on-one connection, and conveyed the same sincere, caring interest and calm appreciation to the animals she loved as to the people in her widespread and intersecting circles of friends. In turn, animals responded to her.
At ARF, she was recognized as a Volunteer of the Year for her dedication and efforts in visiting and helping to socialize the shelter cats. Her own cat, Sammy, routinely traveled with her by train back and forth from the city to East Hampton.
A member of Quail Hill Farm in Amagansett, Ms. Choy loved her visits there to pick fresh produce in the fields and to gather with farm members for annual potluck events.
She was born on April 14, 1953, a daughter of James and Muriel Choy, who owned a restaurant in Brooklyn. Both of her parents died before her. A sister, Debbie Choy of Hawaii, survives, as do a number of cousins, aunts, and uncles, and numerous close friends.
Ms. Choy's ashes were spread at the ocean beach. At a gathering of her friends recently at Maidstone Park Beach in Springs, there was an extended moment of silence in her honor as an orange June sun slipped below the horizon.
Donations may be made in her memory to the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons, P.O. Box 2616, East Hampton 11937, or to Quail Hill Farm, c/o Peconic Land Trust, 296 Hampton Road, Southampton 11968.
— Joanne Pilgrim
