Shirley Marie Curtis

On Sunday, March 16, 2025, Shirley Marie (Butler) Curtis entered eternal rest at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C. after a brief illness. Shirley was born on August 18, 1939, in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. She was the fifth of eleven children born to the late Thomas Henry and Catherine Irene (Belt) Butler. At an early age Shirley was baptized and was a member of St Mary’s of the Assumption Catholic Church.

Shirley was educated in the Prince George’s County Public School system. After leaving school she helped in the tobacco fields, working alongside her father and siblings. She later worked for the Prince George’s County Public School system. For much of her life, she worked as a private housekeeper for several families.

Shirley loved spending time with her nine children and her large extended family and friends. She was just as happy sitting around enjoying good conversation with family and friends, as she was being the life of the party. If the music was playing, she was dancing, beckoning anyone standing idle to join her on the dance floor. Shirley made everyone feel welcomed and loved, she was thought of as a second mother by many. If someone was in need and she had it, she would help in any way she could.

During the day you could find Shirley engrossed in her favorite day-time TV shows. She had a favorite character on each show, Victor was her man on Young & the Restless, Steve Harvey on Family Feud, Justin Wilson from a PBS Cooking show, and Steve Urkel and Arnold from Family Matters and Different Strokes. In the evening you could find her watching her favorite dancer “Dancing Tony” on Breeze Country. Shirley was also a vicarious Dallas fan, while most of her family were Washington Commanders fans. She knew very little about football, but if her two youngest sons liked Dallas, “Dallas was her team!”

Shirley leaves to cherish her memory nine children, Joanne Butler, Freddie Curtis (Angela), Donald Curtis, Betty Short (Thomas), Wanda Lanier, Kathy Green (Ray), Pamela Curtis, Rodney Curtis (Karen) and James Curtis (Sencee), 32 grandchildren, and 30 great grandchildren, one brother, Paul Butler, three sisters, Betty Butler, Doris (Butler) Spencer, and Carolyn (Butler) Smith, four sisters-in-law, Jacqueline (Hall) Butler, Geraldine (Curtis) Griffith, Lorraine (Curtis) Carby, and Edith (Medley) Curtis, one brother-in-law, Donald Spencer, many nieces, nephews and other relatives.

In addition to her parents, Shirley is preceded in death by her partner, James Abrams, ex-husband Freddy Curtis, brothers, James L., Thomas H., and Frances E. Butler; sisters, Agnes (Butler) Barnett, Teresa (Butler) Deville, and Mary Elsie (Butler) Smith; brothers-in-law Sylvester Barnett, Joseph Deville, George Smith, Michael Smith, Wilmore, Rudolph, Leroy and Ralph Curtis, George Griffith and Cecil Carby; sisters-in-law Eugenia (Sellman) Butler, and Barbara (Cook) Curtis.