Patricia (Kroll) O'Brien

July 12, 2014 Last Updated: July 12, 2014 02:01 PM Death Notice

Patricia (Kroll) O'Brien, 79, of Cranberry Township passed away Tuesday.

Pat was born on Sept. 20, 1934, in Duquesne to Fred and Lillian (Huwalt) Kroll, and grew up in West Mifflin.

Pat attended Homeville Junior High School and Munhall High School, where she was known for her beauty, blond hair and twirling skills. Pat, a majorette at Munhall, twirled fire batons and marched in many Fall Fantasy Parades at Kennywood Park. She also participated in many variety shows at the Carnegie Library in Homestead.

She graduated from high school in May 1952, and in September of that year, married the man of her dreams, George O'Brien, who passed away on Feb. 8, 2013. She was also preceded in death by her parents and her sister, Sharon (Sherrie) Kroll Hudak.

Pat and George raised their family in West Mifflin, where they created extraordinarily magical Christmas mornings, and in Edinboro, where summer days were spent carefree and filled with fun, skiing and swimming.

Pat and George moved to Cranberry Township in 1997, and for the past eight years, Pat worked for the Devlin Funeral Home. Pat also worked closely with local VFW Post 879, handling memberships and mailings.

Pat had a wonderful smile and a great laugh. She enjoyed a good joke and was game for anything. She was considered the “cool” mom by the friends of her children. One friend noted, “My memories of her are the many times we had talks at your kitchen table and her trying to keep us (me) on the straight and narrow. May God Bless her tenfold just for that.”

Pat was an excellent seamstress and there wasn't anything she couldn't sew, repair or upholster. Her sewing accomplishments ranged from Barbie doll clothes, to everyday work dresses, to costumes for summer ski shows at Edinboro, and to prom and wedding gowns.

Pat is survived by her children, Shelley (Craig) Dolan of Bel Air, Md., Terry of Morgantown, W.Va., and Wendy (Jack) Lydon of Cranberry Township; her grandchildren, Mollai and Craig Dolan, Shane, Colin, and Trent O'Brien, and Keara Lydon; and her great-grandson, Wren O'Brien. She is also survived by her brother, James Kroll and his wife, Sandy, of Carefree, Ariz., and her special nieces, Leslie Hudak Sanchez, Nicole Hudak Greiner and Kristen Hudak Mulholland.

O'Brien — Visitation for Patricia (Kroll) O'Brien, who passed away Tuesday, June 10, 2014, is from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday and 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at the Devlin Funeral Home of Cranberry, Rochester Road, Cranberry Township. Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home.In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made “In Memory of Pat O'Brien” to Hair Peace Charities, 102 Cleveland Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15202 or to the Cranberry Township VFW Post 879, c/o 119 Zeigler Drive, Harmony, PA 16037.