Lorraine Caruthers Snell

Lorraine Caruthers Snell died March 28, 2025, in Falls Church, Virginia. She was 103 years old and the Matriarch of an ever-growing family of which she was very proud. Lorraine was born on February 4, 1922, in Tulsa, OK, to Charles Preston and Leila (Nye) Caruthers. A good student, she graduated from high school at 16 and went to work at her local church to help support her family.

When she was 20, she moved to Independence, MO, to work for the Remington Arms ammunition plant which made munitions in support of the war effort. She was Secretary to George Snell there, and they married in July, 1943. They were then sent to the University of Chicago, where George worked as an engineer on the Manhattan Project and Lorraine was a secretary. George then received a commission to enter the Navy, and they moved to New York while he did basic training. Thereafter, he was assigned to the Washington Navy Yard, Washington, D. C., and they moved once again, living in Arlington, VA.

In 1945, after World War II ended, they went into the real estate development business in Northern Virginia. Lorraine was very active in the business as Vice President and Secretary. They formed Snell Construction Corporation in 1947, and built houses, apartment buildings, and office buildings. Lorraine continued to be influential to the business for the next 70 years. Her daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren have all also been involved and the company still operates today as Snell Properties.

George was from Nantucket, MA, and it became Lorraine’s favorite place after her first visit. They spent all their summers on Nantucket, finally building their own home there in 1965. Due to declining health, Lorraine’s last summer on Nantucket was 2022.

Lorraine had a strong religious faith and was active throughout her life in church activities. She belonged to Westover Baptist Church, in Arlington, VA, and later Columbia Baptist Church, in Falls Church, VA. In Nantucket, she was an Associate Member at First Congregational Church.

Lorraine was predeceased by her husband George A. Snell (1997), her parents, her sisters and her brother Preston Caruthers (2023). She is survived by her five daughters Rev. Georgia Ann Snell of Nantucket, MA, Lynda Vickers-Smith of Richmond, VA, Nancy E. Snell of Arlington, VA, Kathryn S. (Steve) Harkness of Alexandria, VA, and Carolyn S. (Dr. Merle) Fossen of Falls Church, VA. She is also survived by 18 grandchildren and 34 great grandchildren.

A service to celebrate her life will be held at 11 am on April 10, 2025, at Columbia Baptist Church in Falls Church, VA, followed by a reception at Washington Golf and Country Club in Arlington. The burial will be on Nantucket Island.

Donations may be made to the Nantucket Conservation Foundation or the First Congregational Church, Nantucket, MA.