Shirley Rose (Goodhart) Lawler

Shirley was born April 10, 1929 in St. Louis, the daughter of Charlotte and Bernard Goodhart Sr.

Shirley and her older brother Benny (Bernard Jr.) enjoyed a wonderful youth in St. Louis. Shirley shared with her family many happy memories of growing up near Tower Grove Park and developing life-long friendships.

Shirley Goodhart and Terrence Lawler were wed on February 20, 1954 and over the next decade grew their family to 8 – 3 sons and 3 daughters. She was not shy about suggesting that diaper service would be a welcome baby gift. Shirley and Terry made a loving home in Affton, MO with their 6 children. Their children were fortunate enough to have both sets of grandparents nearby, as well.

Shirley valued family above all else and is survived by her daughter-in-law Reenah Lawler and 4 of her 6 children and their spouses – Elaine and her husband Jim Gallup, Virginia and her husband A.K. Zumalt, Randall and his wife Yon Sy, and Lois and her husband Mick Nitsch. She is survived by 12 grandchildren and their spouses, 15 great-grand children and 4 nieces and 1 nephew and their families. Her grandchildren had the opportunity to spend much one-on-one time with Shirley growing up and they will always have those fond memories.

Shirley was preceded in death by her husband Terrence Lawler and oldest sons Gary Lawler and John Lawler. She was also preceded in death by her parents, parents-in-law Lela and Joseph Lawler, her brother Benny and his wife Darleen, her sister-in-law Patricia and her husband Henry Heusack.

We cherish Shirley’s re-telling of the stories of her youth, such as that unwelcome kiss from Jimmy in the cloakroom on the first day of kindergarten. She overcame this and developed into a social butterfly. Throughout her life she was a friend to all. At Roosevelt High School, she and her classmates would gather every Friday after school to dance. One classmate brought the record player and others brought records and everyone had a fun afternoon of dancing.

In high school, she and her girlfriends walked home after school through Tower Grove Park. They took turns bringing a dime so they could buy a coffee cake at the nearby bakery to share. Her friend Helen always had a knife in her purse to cut the cake.

Kids could purchase a weekly bus pass with unlimited rides. Shirley and her friends made great use of the bus passes to go to the swimming pools, the movies, roller skating and shopping downtown. They used Knot Hole Gang tickets to see the St. Louis Cardinals and Browns at Sportsman’s Park.

As young adults they took the street car and bus to go dancing at the Casa Loma Ballroom in St. Louis. They enjoyed live performances of Jimmy & Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller and other Big Band musicians.

Shirley was always ready for an adventure and took many trips including to Lake Taneycomo and Biloxi, MS with her best friends of her youth Vera and Dolly, Hawaii with her mother, Nova Scotia, Florida, South Dakota and many other states with family and friends.

Shirley purchased a Singer Featherweight sewing machine with her first paycheck after graduation. She sewed for herself and her daughters over the year. Most recently, she used her 70+ year old Singer to sew pillowcases for our Servicemen and Servicewomen and for foster children. She greatly enjoyed choosing special fabrics for the pillowcases, to bring a bit of cheer to the recipient.

For several years, she volunteered at MarineParents.com where she helped prep and pack care packages for our Servicemen and Servicewomen.

She held many jobs which she enjoyed, including in her parents’ business Peerless Casket Company, Monsanto, Maritz, Western Electric and 3M. After retirement she took up quilting and set a goal of making quilts for her grandchildren, all hand sewn and hand quilted. She put the last stitches in her 7th quilt just weeks before her passing.

St. Luke's Evangelical & Reformed United Church of Christ was Shirley’s church home growing up. She was baptized, confirmed and wed at St. Luke's. After moving to Affton, MO the family joined Eden UCC. She and Terry joined the Columbia United Church of Christ when they moved to Columbia more than 4 decades ago. Her church family was very important to her and Shirley gave freely of her time and talents.

Shirley was an active member of Women’s Fellowship, Church Women United and her church quilting group where they made and raffled quilts and quilted for others, with proceeds donated to special missions. She also helped coordinate bereavement luncheons and assisted for many years in assembling and prepping for mailing the monthly church newsletter.

As we all do, Shirley had many bumps in her road, but always accepted them as part of life’s journey and moved forward with grace. Shirley had a long and fulfilling life of almost 92 years, and left a lasting legacy for her family to remember her by. She was an inspiration to her family.

Visitation for Shirley will be 10 am Friday March 26, 2021 with services to follow at 11 am at Memorial Funeral Home, 1217 Business Loop 70 West, Columbia. Burial will be at Our Redeemer Cemetery in Affton, MO on Saturday.

Memorials in Shirley’s honor may be made to Columbia United Church of Christ, MarineParents.com or the organization of your choice.