Laurence Allnutt Elgin

Laurence Allnutt Elgin, a servant of God, passed peacefully from this life to eternity on April 26, 2019 at INOVA Fairfax Hospital, surrounded by the family he loved. Larry was born at the old Georgetown Hospital in Washington, DC on January 13, 1942, the middle child of Arthur Carpenter Elgin, Sr. and Ellen Dawson Allnutt Elgin. He graduated from Bethesda-Chevy Chase HS, Northwestern University, and the George Washington University Law School. While at Northwestern, he served as social chairman for Phi Gamma Delta. After finishing law school, he ran a private practice, representing primarily poor and vulnerable residents of the District of Columbia. In his younger years, Larry was involved with the Civil Rights movement, participating in the Freedom Rides, and working in Louisiana in the early 70’s on community outreach, job training and rehabilitation. He served on the Vestry of All Souls Episcopal Church, and founded the Woodley Park Farmer’s Market in the early 80’s. He served as president of the Little Run Citizens Association and was a member of the George Mason Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution. In his last years, he volunteered as a poll worker on election days in Fairfax County. Larry came from a rural Maryland background, farming in his younger years, and enjoyed gardening throughout his life. He loved music, singing and playing the guitar. He wrote and enjoyed reading poetry, and was an avid reader of history books and a consumer of the news. He is survived by his wife of 38 years, Eileen Donnelly Elgin, as well as his daughter Molly Elgin-Cossart (Jean-Baptiste), sons Matthew and Jack, granddaughters Zoé and Céline Elgin-Cossart, brothers Arthur (Sonja) and Clifford (Caroline), many nieces and nephews and extended family. A Requiem Mass will be celebrated May 8, 2019 at 11 o'clock in the morning at Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian Roman Catholic Church in Washington DC. The Elgin family wishes to express their heartfelt gratitude to the caring MSICU staff at INOVA Fairfax Hospital. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.