Shirley Price Callister
July 2, 1922- January 18, 2015 Lafayette, California
Our mother, grandmother, aunt and friend, passed away peacefully with her family at her side on January 18, 2015. Shirley was born at home on July 2, 1922 in Salt Lake City, Utah, the youngest of five children of Julia Blanche Lauritzen and Thomas Lawrence Price. As a child, Shirley enjoyed dancing, spending time with her friends and trips to the family’s ranch in southern Utah. She graduated from East High School in 1939 and then attended the University of Utah. As a young woman, she especially enjoyed her job as a roller-skating Western Union telegram courier. In 1942 Shirley married the love of her life, Cyril Taft Callister MD, and they remained inseparable for 61 years until Cy’s death in 2003.
Shirley and Cy moved to Northern California during WWII where Shirley worked at Tidewater Oil in San Francisco. Later they lived in Dragerton, Utah and the Seattle area before settling Lafayette in 1948 where they raised their five children. Shirley enjoyed gardening, bridge, cooking, needlepoint and traveling. She and Cy visited many sites around the United States, Europe and New Zealand and even participated in a medical exchange program in the former Soviet Union during the Cold War. One particular highlight was their trip on the QEII to London with a return on the Concorde supersonic jet for their 50th wedding anniversary. Shirley was also very active in the Tuolumne Guild that raised money for the creation and improvement of John Muir Medical Center, and in the Women’s Auxiliary of the Contra Costa Medical Society.
Shirley’s family was the focus of her life. Her home of over 65 years in Lafayette was her castle and she was the anchor and practical voice in a house full of lively personalities. Her wit, humor, wisdom and love for life were contagious. From her famous 4th of July parties to many family events, she was the consummate hostess. Everyone was welcome and any pretensions were checked at the door. Even at 90 years old, “Mima’s House” was always “home” for her extended family which over the years grew to include a multitude of her grandchildren’s college classmates who all loved her dearly.
She is survived by her five children Susan Price Callister, Barry Price Callister (Cecilia), Ann Callister (Bruce Brennen), Bruce Callister (Deborah Cox), and Brian Callister, MD (Rose Lorea) and eight grandchildren Devin Callister, MD, Mathew Callister, Andrew Callister, Coreen Callister, Louis Callister, Liam Callister, Erin Callister and Connor Callister as well as many beloved nieces and nephews and extended family. She was preceded in death by her four siblings, Thomas Price, Maurice Price, Rhea Bain, and Helen Gray.
A celebration of her life is planned for Saturday, February 7th, 2015 at 10 a.m. at the Lafayette Veterans Memorial Center, 3780 Mt. Diablo Blvd., Lafayette, CA 94549. In lieu of flowers donations are welcome for Hospice of East Bay, 3470 Buskirk Ave., Pleasant Hill, CA 94523.