Loretta Schmitz died peacefully in Oakland on August 15, 2016 after a prolonged illness. Loretta was born in New York City on October 30, 1935 to Nicholas and Josephine (Tucciarone) D'Agostino. She excelled in her studies at the Mary Louis Academy (Queens, NY), the College of New Rochelle, and University of Chicago. While in college, Loretta began her lifelong career as an advocate for social justice as a member of the Young Christian Students. Through YCS, she met her future husband, the poet Dennis Schmitz. The couple wed in 1960, eventually settling in Sacramento.Throughout her life in Sacramento and Oakland, Loretta was a loving and devoted mother and grandmother. She also continued her activism for peace and justice-- including the causes of nuclear disarmament and abolition of the death penaltyand served as a Eucharistic minister at various hospitals. Loretta is survived by Dennis, her husband of 56 years, and their five children (Anne, Sara, Martha, Paul, and Matthew), and ten grandchildren (Alex, Rosali, Victoria, Josephine, Sophia, Daniel, Samuel, Gordon, Irene, and Peter). A memorial mass will be held at St. Augustine's Church, 400 Alcatraz Avenue in Oakland, on Thursday, August 25th at 11:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, contributions to Partners in Health (www.pih.org) or your favorite social justice cause are appreciated.