Patricia Teunisse is a second generation Indo. Her parents, Renee Teunisse and Christiaan Teunisse were both born in Indonesia. Renee Teunisse (Pieters) in Jakarta and Christiaan Teunisse in Java. Both survived the war times in their birth country under Japanese occupation but were repatriated to the Netherlands after the Bersiap Periode. They met, fell in love and married in Amsterdam. Patricia is the second of four children born to the family, three, herself, a brother and sister, in the Netherlands and one late comer, a sister, in the USA. She was born in Nijmegen and immigrated with her family to Los Angeles, California in May of 1968 just prior to her fifth birthday. She is closely tied to her Indo, Dutch and American families.

Raised in Southern California, Patricia attended California schools and has both a BS (Business Administration) and a BA (Political Science) from the University of Southern California. She also has a JD from Pacific Law at the University of the Pacific (in Sacramento). She has been a member of the California Bar and a practicing lawyer since 1988. Her interests lie in the political geography of the Indos, their heritage and their history. She wants to make sure her children will know about Oma and Opa’s heritage, the country of their birth and their long ties to the Dutch East Indies.