of Little Rock, AR

June 14, 1931 - February 11, 2020

Elisabeth Ann ''Liz'' McCullough Lodato, a longtime resident of New Orleans and Slidell, died February 11, 2020, in Little Rock, Arkansas.  She was 88 years old. 

Liz was a feisty redhead, born on June 14, 1931, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to Madalyn Louise Griffith McCullough and Richard Joseph McCullough. 

She experienced significant loss early in her life with the death of her older sister Mary Cecilia, when Liz was only 15 years old and then with the loss of her mother when Liz was 18 years old and had just graduated from high school.  Liz talked about her mom and sister often.   

Liz lived with her father until she graduated from St. Joseph's College with a degree in Microbiology.  After college she worked in the microbiology lab at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.

Liz had a true adventurous spirit and loved to travel.  She traveled to Europe by herself after she had graduated from college and loved telling stories from that 6 week-long trip.

In 1956, Liz decided to take a train trip to New Orleans with her friend to go to Mardi Gras.  She ended up loving the city so much, she quit her job at Johns Hopkins, moved to an apartment in Uptown New Orleans and started working at Ochsner Hospital. Liz later went on to teach science at St. James Major in New Orleans and also to teach at Pope John Paul II High School in Slidell.

Liz married Joe Lodato on August 1, 1959, in New Orleans, Louisiana.  They were married 59 years before Joe passed away in 2018.  Liz moved to Arkansas in 2019 to be close to her eldest daughter, Suzanne. 

Liz is survived by her three children, Suzanne (Little Rock, AR), Michael (Freeport, ME) and Amy (Houston, TX), their spouses Paul, Stacey and Fernando, and four grandchildren, Allison, Caroline, Connor and Joey. She is also survived by niece Karen Martinez (New Orleans, LA) and nephew Darryl Lodato (Mandeville, LA). 

She loved to read, paint and write and had a strong creative side.  Liz played the piano her entire life and found enjoyment doing so even in her final days.  She was a true storyteller and loved to command the crowd during family gatherings with her stories and jokes and was always quick to try to get a laugh. Liz curated lifelong friendships and loved to keep in touch with her friends over the phone. 

Services will be held on Monday, February 17, 2020, at St. Luke the Evangelist Catholic Church, 910 Cross Gates Blvd, Slidell with visitation and rosary at 9:30 AM and the funeral Mass at 11:00 AM.  Liz will be buried next to her husband of 59 years at the Southeast Louisiana Veterans Cemetery, 34888 Grantham College Dr. Slidell, at 12:30 PM.  All are welcome to attend and celebrate Liz's life.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The National Shrine Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes in Liz's name (16330 Grotto Road Emmitsburg, MD 21727 or https://www.nsgrotto.org/).

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