Elizabeth C. Curry

Elizabeth "Betty" Curry, 86, of Sharon, passed away Wednesday morning (10-11-23) at UPMC Jameson, New Castle, after an illness.

She was born in Sharon to Eugene and Marie (Burke) Reilly on Dec. 26, 1936, the fourth of five daughters.

Her Sharon High yearbook of 1954 notes, "At first you'll think she's quiet, but then you'll find out she's quite the gal…nice to have around!" Her first cousins/classmates were Patrick Rielly, past president of the PGA, and his brother Bill.

Betty worked for The Sharon Store and for 12 years at Household Finance Corp. in downtown Sharon as a credit interviewer and office manager, where she met and fell in love with her husband of 57 years, Roland Curry, a native of Erie. They married on Aug. 13, 1966 at St. Joseph Church, Sharon.

While raising their four children, she worked as office manager, bookkeeper and secretary/treasurer for her husband's contracting business, McClimans and Reilly, for seven years.

Betty was active in the American Business Women's Association and the Mercer County Regional Planning Commission, was vice president and secretary of the Sharon Citizens Advisory Board's nominating committee; and was committee chairwoman, secretary, treasurer, vice president and then president of the Musser Elementary PTO. She organized neighborhood cleanups at the school.

Close friends from her monthly card club called her Cam, a nickname for the confirmation name she chose as her middle name.

Betty was a longtime member of St. Joseph Church and attended St. Stanislaus Church in Sharon.

She studied at Penn State Shenango and Sharon Regional Hospital's nursing school to become a registered nurse in 1988 after her children were in high school and college. She worked the midnight shift at UPMC Horizon in Farrell for more than a decade.

Betty, who was best known for her honesty and generosity, loved to travel and organized family trips to Ireland, Hawaii and the Inn at Little Washington. She and Roland drove their camper to various states to see lighthouses, covered bridges, hot air balloons and oceans. They loved to vacation with family where they honeymooned, Cook Forest, as well as at Shenango Lake Campground.

Until recently, Betty was a voracious reader of thriller mysteries and completed the daily Sudoku puzzle. She cheered for all of Cleveland's teams while Roland rooted for Pittsburgh.

Despite the profound sadness of her loss, her family is grateful for the many wonderful memories she created for everyone.

Besides her parents, she was preceded in death by her sisters, Marie Reilly, Jean Baltuz, Patricia Reilly and Barbara Reilly.

Surviving are: her husband,Roland, her children, Kim (wife of Harry Pelles), Cheryl Popovitch (wife of Ted Popovitch), all of Sharon; Patrick of Norfolk, Va., and Julie (wife of Richard Barsom) of Galway, N.Y.; and a granddaughter, Cassandra Elizabeth Telega (fiancée of Jonathan Knapp), of New Lebanon.

Visitation will be held on Tuesday from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM at the Harold W. Stevenson Funeral Home LLC, 264 E. State Street, Sharon, PA, 16146.

A funeral mass will be held on Wednesday at 11:30 AM from St. Joseph's Catholic Church, 76 Case Ave., Sharon, PA, 16146, with Fr. Richard Allen officiating. Burial will follow in St. Elizabeth's Cemetery. Everyone should meet at the church.

Please consider donating in Betty's memory to Shriners Children's Hospital of Erie, Doctors Without Borders, a local library or the charity of your choice.