In Kitty Shea's household, the movie "The Quiet Man," starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara was shown every St. Patrick's Day. Her children recalled how much Kitty Shea admired the rugged, feisty Irish-American boxer who Wayne portrayed, because, in a way, it was a reflection of her life — the pride and courage that enabled her to carry on during the difficult periods of her life. Catherine M. "Kitty" Shea, of Brighton Heights and formerly of the West End, died on Thursday, July 18, 2002, in her home. She was 90. At age 13, Kitty Mehaffey dropped out of school when her mother died and she and her brother and sister went to live with relatives. In 1956, her husband, James Shea, a smokestack painter for Duquesne Light, died and left her with five children. "I was only seven years old when my father died," said her daughter, Trudie Lotz. "Mom worked in a research lab, found secretarial work with a real estate company, and for many years, before her retirement in 1974, managed the gift shop at Mercy Hospital (Uptown). And she was able to send us all through Catholic high schools." Born and raised in the West End, Catherine Mehaffey was one of three children in the family of William and Mary Ellen Powers Mehaffey. Her father delivered bread throughout the West End with a horse and buggy. The Mehaffeys were members of St. James Catholic Church in the West End, where Catherine Mehaffey attended St. James School. "When my grandmother died, my mother, her sister and her brother were divided among relatives," Lotz said. "Mom worked in a laundry and washed floors and changed sheets in the bedrooms of a hotel and bar that was owned by a relative. "When my mother married my dad in 1931, she was able to bring her sister, Marie, to live with them," Lotz said. "Mom and Dad had eloped and were married in Wellsburg, West Virginia. They were remarried at St. James six months later." In 1975, Mrs. Shea saw her life-long dream come true, when her children sent her to Ireland with a group from St. James Parish. She was able to visit County Cork, from which her grandparents had emigrated. "Mom enjoyed her retirement," Lotz said. "Even when she came to live with us, we took her to St. James Church every Sunday morning. Mrs. Shea is survived by her daughters, Joanne Thompson, of Sheraden; Kathleen Steinbeck, of Cochranton, Crawford County; and Trudie Lotz of Brighton Heights; a son, James Shea, of Mercer, Mercer County; 28 grandchildren, 43 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren. She also was the mother of the late Mary Brownliee, and sister of Marie Steiner and the late George Mehaffey. Friends will be received from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. today and Sunday at Schepner-McDermott Funeral Home, 165 Noble Ave., Crafton. A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 9:30 a.m. Monday in Guardian Angel Parish, St. James Worship Site.

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