Lauretta Schirra Critchlow

Lifetime Forest Hills and Wilkinsburg resident Lauretta Carolyn Schirra Critchlow passed away peacefully on Thursday, March 13, 2025, at the age of 100.

Born August 3, 1924, in Wilkinsburg, Lauretta was the eldest child of Edna Link and Ernest Schirra. Her siblings are brother Ernest and sister Sylvia.  After graduating from Wilkinsburg High School and working at a bank during WWII, she married James Kingsley Critchlow in 1948. They were married for 55 years and together had four children. She worked in coordination with her husband in his work as a certified public accountant and part-time at Forest Hills Transfer and Storage for many years.

Lauretta was an active and devoted member of Christ Lutheran Church in Forest Hills, where she taught Sunday School and Vacation Bible School. During WWII she and a group of her friends met together to sew and socialize. They simply called themselves “the club girls” and these friendships lasted over 75 years.

Her children remember her as a kind and devoted mother. Her grandchildren and great-grandchildren hold fond memories of visiting her warm and loving home.

Lauretta is survived by her sister Sylvia Campbell of Verona; her children James Critchlow (Cindy) of Gettysburg, Carolyn Redfoot (Joel) of Wexford, Deborah Goad (Jerry) of Lakewood, CO, and Karen Morrison (Jack) of Milton, DE; 10 grandchildren and their spouses; and 12 great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be at Wolfe Memorial, LLC, Forest Hills Chapel, 3600 Greensburg Pike, Pittsburgh PA 15221, on Sunday, March 16, from 5:00 to 7:00p.m. Funeral service will be at Christ Lutheran Church on Monday, March 17, at 10:00a.m. Everyone please meet at church. Burial in William Penn Cemetery, Churchill.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Christ Lutheran Church of Forest Hills, 400 Barclay Ave., Pittsburgh PA 15221, www.christlutheranfh.org/donate.

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