Deborah Criswell, 61, wife of William Criswell of Orinda CA passed away on January 8 at John Muir Hospital in Walnut Creek, CA after experiencing a respiratory crisis that resulted in cardiac arrest.
Debbie was a force of nature - a ball of fire who was a vibrant, articulate, intelligent, witty and caring person devoted to living a joyful life and supporting her family and friends. She was blessed with a wonderful sense of humor, and blessed others with it. A government affairs executive for Merck & Company, Inc., Debbie worked tirelessly to ensure affordable prescriptions and immunizations were available to people from all walks of life.
A memorial service will be held on Monday, February 1, at 1:00 PM PST at Congregation B'nai Tikvah Temple at 25 Hillcroft Way, Walnut Creek, CA 94597.
Immediately following the memorial service will be a celebration of Debbie's life at Veteran's Memorial Center, 3780 Mt Diablo Blvd, Lafayette, CA 94549.
Debbie was born in Burlington Vt. on August 5, 1954. Her family later moved to Syracuse, NY. Debbie is the daughter of Alan and Laura Smith and has two siblings: Linda Smith and Pam Beckerman. Debbie attended Nottingham High School where she was a cheerleader. After earning her Bachelors and Master's degrees from The Ohio State University, Debbie began her career as a social worker with Big Sisters. She later worked as a government affairs professional for various organizations. In her twelve years at the Pharmaceutical Research Manufacturers of America (PhRMA, formerly PMA), she served as Policy Director in their Washington, D.C. office, and later relocated to California as Region Director where she coordinated all of the industry's legislative efforts for the western part of the country. Her career path eventually led to Merck where she worked for over two decades promoting important healthcare policy and legislation across the Pacific states. To her Merck colleagues she was a dear friend, mentor, team advocate, and the heart of the team. Debbie knew the nuances of the pharmaceutical industry and used that knowledge to help drive changes in how California state government works with the industry. These changes benefited hundreds of thousands of Californians.
The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in Debbie's name to Shriners Hospital for Children Northern CA, Attention: Alan Anderson - Development Department, 2425 Stockton Blvd., Sacramento, CA 95817.
Debbie is survived by her husband, William, and her step-children Ryan and Lindsey and Lindsey's fiancé Chris Ingram. In her spare time, Debbie enjoyed music, reading, golf, Napa Valley, especially Meadowood, the wine tours and the restaurants, vacations to warm climates, making others laugh and time with loved ones.