Ellen C. Zerbe

Ellen Cogswell Zerbe, was born to William and Olive Cogswell on September 25, 1944. She grew up with her older brother Bill on South Quincy Street, a tight-knit neighborhood in Arlington, where many life-long friendships were made. Ellen graduated from Wakefield High School in Arlington in 1962 and shortly thereafter, Ellen began her career at the US Department of State. She quickly made a name for herself as a skilled and dedicated executive administrative assistant.

Ellen met and married John Ivie in 1970, and moved to Manassas to join her new family. William was born the following year and Ellen put her career on hold for the remainder of the decade to raise her growing family. In 1979, Ellen gave birth to a “snowman” in the aftermath of the great blizzard, welcoming Andrew, who unlike the groundhog did not want to wait six weeks for spring. In addition to the arrival of Andy, Ellen also embarked on a two-year adventure in Taipei, Taiwan. In the midst of learning a new culture, a new language, and new culinary skills, Ellen resumed her career, working at The American Institute in Taiwan.

After returning to her native Arlington, Ellen learned to balance the demands of a single mother raising two boys and working full–time. In 1985 Ellen began working for the US Ambassador to the UN, Vernon Walters, at his Washington, D.C. office. At the same time, she became an active “band-parent” at Yorktown High School. While serving in this capacity, she met and swept Bruce W. Zerbe off his feet. Their romance lead Bruce to propose marriage, complete with a self-composed trumpet fanfare, at the beginning of a band competition in Myrtle Beach, SC.

Shortly after Ellen and Bruce were married, she joined Ambassador Walters, serving as his executive assistant at the US Embassy in Bonn, [West] Germany. It did not take Ellen long to discover the finer points of Europe, namely Belgian lace, chocolate and German cuckoo clocks! Ellen retired from the Department of State in 2001, however the two years she spent in Germany were the highlight of her many, decorated years of service. In retirement, Ellen, who was a life-long member of Trinity Episcopal Church, remained active by volunteering at the Columbia Pike thrift shop her mother co-founded more than 50 years earlier.

The center of Ellen’s life was, without a doubt, her family. “Mom/Grammy/Ellen” as she referred to herself, doted on and bragged about her family to anyone who would listen. Ellen especially loved her five grandchildren: Brooklynn, Maggie, Molly, Aiden and Elliot. Grammy and her “little chickies” enjoyed erasing the miles, staying in touch with regular “FaceTime” visits, phone calls, and text-messages. Ellen was predeceased by her adoring husband, Bruce, in 2009. She is survived by her brother, William N. Cogswell and sister-in-law Barbara of Arlington; her son William and daughter-in-law Tara of Fort Worth; and son Andrew and daughter-in-law Stacey of Alexandria.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations may be made in Ellen’s name to either Trinity Episcopal Church or The American Lung Association, 3001 Gettysburg Road Camp Hill, PA 17011.