PHYLLIS MARSCHALL CRAMER

CRAMER PHYLLIS MARSCHALL
Of Fox Chapel, died with family at her side on October 13, 2016, at St. Margaret Hospital after battling multiple medical issues. Phyllis was born at home to Charles and Helen Marschall on November 29, 1929, in Kenilworth, Illinois where she and her sister, Charleen, would grow up. Phyllis graduated from New Trier High School, Winnetka, IL. In 1947 she married Arthur Hale Curtis, Jr. and they had three children. Arthur was killed in a car crash in 1960. Phyllis was also injured in the crash, which affected her mobility but not her spirit, courage or sense of humor for the rest of her life. In the summer of 1968 she met Thomas D. Cramer, a widower raising three children of his own. Phyllis and Tom married in October 1968. The new family often referred to itself as "the Brady Bunch" and as "Yours, Mine and Ours" with the addition in December 1969 of daughter, Dana. Phyllis was a career mom who loved her family. She also enjoyed travel, Junior League, transcribing for the blind and along with her late sister, managed family farming interests in Iowa. She was an avid reader, accomplished needlepointer and experienced gardener. She enjoyed many family ski and horseback riding vacations in the West. She was candid, kind, thankful and had a terrific sense of humor. She faced life's many challenges with courage and grace. Phyllis was preceded in death by her parents, Charles and Helen; her sister, Charleen Ball; and son-in-law, Todd Copeland. She is survived by her husband, Thomas; seven children and spouses, Arthur Curtis III (Terry), Lauren Curtis, M.D., Peter Curtis (Eileen), Carolyn Sanford (Scott), Cynthia Lackey (Steve), Larry Cramer (Joann), Dana Copeland; and ten grandchildren, Kim Coleman, Susan and Lauren Copeland, Peter and Katie Curtis, Elizabeth and Meredith Lackey, Scott, Tom and Caroline Sanford. A memorial service will take place at Christ Church, Fox Chapel, on Saturday, February 11, 2017, at 11 a.m. To honor Phyllis, donations may be made to: www.hazeldenbettyford.org/ donate, www.arthritis.org, Fox Chapel Garden Club: P.O. Box 11320, Pittsburgh, PA 15238, or to donor's charity of choice. Professional Services Trusted to THOMAS M. SMITH FUNERAL HOME & CREMATORY, LTD. www.thomasmsmithfh.com