Devotion to her family animated the life of Penelope Holloway Fitzgerald.

The ninth of 11 siblings who became the mother of seven children, she was a loving, guiding force to both her sisters and brothers, and especially to her sons and daughters.

An athlete endowed with a keen intellect, "Nep" was as comfortable in a pool or on the tennis court as she was in enlightening visitors to her beloved Philadelphia Museum of Art about Picasso, Mary Cassatt, or Brancusi.

Her passions were her children and anything and everything cultural. Never without a book in hand, Nep was a role model, an inspiration to her four daughters and three sons to approach their futures, their dreams, with a relentless intellectual curiosity and vigor.

In another era, she might have become a university professor.

Born in Jacksonville, FL to Dr. Luther William Holloway, one of Florida's first pediatricians, and Jean O'Leary Holloway, formerly of New Orleans, Nep attended the Bartram School before matriculating at Bryn Mawr College, and eventually Immaculata College. In the way that only older brothers can do, her early childhood nickname "Penny" was reversed to "Nep," and the new moniker stuck.

While at Bryn Mawr, she met the love of her life, William Fitzgerald, Jr, whom she would remain married to for nearly 68 years. Together they built a life that provided for their children, not least with every educational opportunity. Bill and Nep somehow found time to become accomplished tennis and paddle tennis players. Nep's sporting spirit found a home at the Philadelphia Country Club and the Merion Cricket Club, enriching her children's lives who followed her in their pursuit of racquet sports. Her name can be found multiple times on the championship boards at PCC.

While Nep's life was grounded in suburban Philadelphia, her beloved beach home in southern New Jersey provided the backdrop for countless family reunions and visits from friends. Memories made there are forever imbued with the joy and peace that Nep never failed to share. At the beach, it was always easy to see the young Florida girl's smile in the generosity of the Philadelphia grandmother and great-grandmother.

Nep's interests and appetite for learning stretched far behind our shores. She traveled to the Soviet Union in the mid-1970's, taking a young daughter to see the treasures of Moscow and St. Petersburg. She later visited her adult children on separate forays to London, Rome and Paris, always inquisitive, always undaunted, never slowed by jet lag or bureaucracy.

Nep lived a life full of adventure, learning and especially, love. Her selfless, open spirit, and modesty, pulled all of us along on a joyous ride to enlightenment. To know Nep was to share her gratitude for the wonders of the world and for the love of those whose lives she touched. For many years, she shared that love as an active volunteer at St. Edmonds Home for Children in Rosemont.

Predeceased by her sisters Mary Pearse Freel, Elizabeth Sanderson, Jean Bein and Catherine Holloway, and her brothers Robert, Luther, and Jack Holloway, and her son Michael Semmes Fitzgerald, Nep is survived by her husband Bill, her daughters Laurie Nowlan (Pat), Catherine McAvoy (Norman), Jean Holloway Fitzgerald, and Carol Fitzgerald, and her sons William (Amy) and Robert Fitzgerald (Luke), as well as by 12 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

Relatives and friends are invited on Saturday December 10th,  Visitation from 1 to 2 PM with Funeral Mass to begin at 2 PM at Our Mother of Good Counsel Church, 31 Pennswood Rd., Bryn Mawr PA. Interment will be private at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Edmond's Home for Children , 320 S. Roberts Rd., Bryn Mawr, PA 19010.