Shirley Ann Liszka Whitaker

Shirley Ann Liszka Whitaker passed away June 17, 2025, at Marietta Memorial Hospital. She was born to Harriet Liszka on May 29, 1947, in Greenville, Pa. She grew up as the oldest cousin of a large family of Liszka relatives Western Pennsylvania and beyond. She enjoyed her role nurturing and mentoring her cousins.

After earning a BSN at the Mount Mercy School of Nursing she worked at the McGee Women's Hospital in Pittsburgh where she met Charles F. Whitaker III. On September 4, 1971, they were married at St. Michaels Catholic Church in Greenville, Pa. The couple was honored to have the ceremony officiated by Dr. Samuel Robinson, a Methodist pastor and grandfather of the groom.

Shirley taught nursing aides at the newlyweds first home in Hale, MI in 1972-73. She continued nursing instruction for many years at WVU-P in Parkersburg. She also worked as an Office Manager in her husband's pediatric practice until they both retired in 2016.

Shirley has been supportive and was active at St. Andrews UMC of Parkersburg, WV since 1975, most recently serving as the church Treasurer. She was a member and served as president of the Parkersburg Community Foundation. She also held membership in the Human Rights Committee of Rescare, the Junior League and a sustainer, and Parkersburg Academy of Medicine Auxiliary. She was a great supporter of the Wood County Society since its inception and raised money each year on the annual telethon.

Shirley loved and delighted in the activities of her children and grandchildren. She was a consummate traveler, crisscrossing the Eastern US to attend various activities. Her children would often send large items to each other using the "Whitaker Express." There was no place more special to Shirley than the family home at Epworth Heights in Ludington, MI. She loved spending her summers enjoying Lake Michigan and the activities of Western Michigan. She was an active member of the community, most recently serving as the President of the Epworth Church Association. If heaven is a reflection of our greatest loves on earth, Shirley will enjoy a cottage with a westward facing porch that overlooks a lake with clear blue waters, foaming whitecaps, and sunsets so beautiful that one cannot help but praise the glory of God's creation. She will be joined by family and friends that preceded her and will look forward to seeing those she left behind on Earth. Soon... but not too soon.

In addition to her husband, her surviving family includes a son, Charles F Whitaker, IV MD “Chad”, his wife, Amy Weber Whitaker of Coldwater, MI, their children, Cerenity, Charles V (Quinn), Brittany and her husband Jesse Shaw, Matt, Nick, and granddaughter, Adalynn; a son, Matthew L Whitaker and his wife, Chastity Shaffer Whitaker of West Chester, Ohio, their children, Caleb and Micah; and daughter, Amy L Whitaker Ward and her husband, Kevin Ward of Mooresville, NC, their children, Anna, James.

A memorial service will be conducted 1:00 p.m., Saturday, August 30, 2025, at St. Andrews United Methodist Church, 1210 20th Street, Parkersburg, West Virginia, 26101.

In lieu of flowers donations are requested to Saint Andrews UMC or to the Wood County Society, P.O. Box 1325, Parkersburg, WV 26102 or online at this link.