Mauricia M. O’Brien

Mauricia M. O’Brien

Mauricia M. O’Brien, 81, of St. Paul, Kan., died at 10:03 a.m., Thursday, Sept. 3, 2020 at the Brookdale Senior Living Center in Shawnee.

She was born March 3, 1939, at the family farmhouse in rural St. Paul, to Henry William and Mary Leodcadia (Donahue) Vitt. She graduated from St. Francis High School in 1957.

On Jan. 9, 1960, she married her high school sweetheart, Joseph “Jay” O’Brien at St. Francis Catholic Church in St. Paul and they started their family. They celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary this past January.

Mauricia worked at Mercy Hospital in Parsons, Hallmark Cards in Kansas City and finally retiring from the St. Paul school district where she worked as a school cook for many years.

Mauricia loved gardening, raising flowers, decorating for the various seasons, bird watching and traveling, especially to Estes Park, Colo. Her grandchildren and great-grandchildren were very special to her and loved all the family gatherings.

She was a member of the St. Francis Catholic Church, Daughters of Isabella, Harvest House, the morning prayer breakfast group and was a volunteer at the Prairie Mission Retirement Village.

Surviving are her husband, Jay, of the home; two daughters, Lisa A. Lalicker and her husband, Jason, of Lawrence, Kan., Lynn D. Greenough and her husband, David, of Parsons, Kan.; two sons, Michael J. O’Brien, and his wife Melinda, of Kansas City, Mo., and Dwayne M. O’Brien, and his wife Tari, of Pittsburg, Kan.; 11 grandchildren, Arlie Diederich, Jarett Dauben, Elizabeth Lalicker, Kathryn Lalicker, Shelby O’Brien, Landon O’Brien, Sherie Greenough, Brandon Greenough, Sara Greenough, Abbie O’Brien and Connor O’Brien; six great-grandchildren, Gus Diederich, Patton Diederich, Colt Dauben, Molly Dauben, Case Dauben and Caden Greenough, along with many nieces and nephews.

Preceding her in death were her parents, a brother, William Vitt and two sisters, Mary Agnes Thompson and Margaret Mary O’Brien.

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, a private rosary will be held at St. Francis Catholic Church in St. Paul, Kan., Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2020 at 9:30 a.m., followed by a private family funeral mass at 10 a.m.

The burial, at St. Francis Cemetery, will follow the mass and the public will be welcome to attend.

The family will receive friends at the Carson-Wall Funeral Home in St. Paul from 6 to 7 p.m., Monday.

Memorials are suggested to either masses or to the Prairie Mission Retirement Village Therapy Program. They may be left at the funeral home or mailed to the funeral home at P.O. Box 942, Parsons, KS 67357. Online condolences may be left at www.wallfuneralservices.com