We lost a very special person who embodied the Catholic faith with her kind and giving heart. Sheila’s proudest role in life was being a wife and mother; and there was no greater mom. She was humble and selfless, always putting her family’s needs first. She did an amazing job cooking and caring for her large crew and handling the finances so that her children could receive a Catholic school education. Sheila never knew a stranger, always greeting everyone she met with a bright smile and chatting them up in her sweet Irish brogue.
Sheila was born in 1931 and left her beloved Ireland in 1954 to venture to New York to marry the love of her life. She is predeceased by her adoring husband of more than 54 years, Thomas Lawn, who she referred to as “Tommy’, her grandsons, Brandon Lawn and Ryan Gribbin and her son-in-law, Billy Gribbin. She is survived by her six children, Cathy Gribbin of New York, Barbara Shock of North Carolina, Thomas Lawn (Nancy) of Virginia, Julie Stones, Sheila Otto (Marc) and Brendan Lawn of Florida; her brother, Billy Hackett of Ireland; her niece, Joan Nisbett of New Jersey; 13 grandchildren; nine great grandchildren and another on the way; and numerous nieces and nephews. Her family is comforted in knowing Sheila is with Tommy again and surrounded by her parents, siblings, grandsons, son-in-law and numerous friends.
Sheila's funeral service will be held on Friday, July 14, 2023 at 11:00 at St. Coleman Catholic Church in Pompano Beach, Florida, where her Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated. Interment will take place alongside her husband at the Oak Hill Cemetery in Fredericksburg, Virginia on Saturday, August 12, 2023 at 10:00.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Sheila's loving memory to one of her grandsons’ memorial scholarship funds.
Brandon Thomas Lawn: Wrestling Team Scholarship Fund, c/o Community Foundation of the Rappahannock River Region, 725 Jackson Street, Suite 218, Fredericksburg, VA 22404-0208.
Ryan Thomas Gribbin: c/o Connetquot High School Wrestling Team, "The Connetquot Takedown Club," ATTN: AD Office, 190 Seventh Street, Bohemia, NY 11716.
It can be a great comfort to a grieving person or family to hear that others thought highly of their loved one, too. If you knew and admired Sheila, be sure to let the family know by writing a few words in the "Memory" section of her obituary on the Kraeer - Fairchild Funeral Home website. www.KraeerFairchild.com
COMPARTA UN OBITUARIO
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