Erma Louise Medeiros

Louise was born on February 25, 1930 to Pauline Kline and Benjamin Botkin but was raised by her grandmother, Martha Sawyer and aunt, Frances Davis. After graduating from high school in Reno, NV, she attended nursing school in Portland, OR and then joined the Army, where she met her husband, Joseph (Joe) Medeiros at Walter Reed Army Hospital. Louise worked briefly for Montgomery Wards and the Nugget Casino before accepting an accounting position with the Internal Revenue Service in Reno. She moved her family to Ogden, UT, Fresno, CA, and Washington, DC as she accepted promotions with the IRS. After 25 years with the IRS, Louise retired, and she and Joe split their time between The Woods in Hedgesville, WV and Deltona, FL. After Joe passed away in 2004, Louise moved back to the Woods for three years, then moved to Springfield, VA for five years, and finally to Potomac Place for eight years.

Louise was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and friend. Joe was an amputee, and Louise doted on him. She had four children Paula, Lyda, Joseph (Little Joe), and Virginia (Ginny), and she was involved with everything they did. She taught her children to water ski and had many fond memories of boating and water skiing at Donner Lake in CA, Pyramid Lake in NV, Pineview Reservoir in UT, Millerton Lake and Pine Flat Lake in CA, and Lake Anna in VA. She snow skied with her children at Snowbasin in UT. She went on trail rides with her children’s junior posse and was in a ladies’ riding group in UT. She was a girl scout leader, attended dance recitals, and was the most avid fan at their sports games. She and her husband invited numerous friends to join them for boating and hosted homemade spaghetti or pizza dinners wherever they lived.

Louise lived a life of self-sacrifice, always putting others before herself. She was generous with her belongings and money, freely giving to anyone who she felt needed it more than she did. She was kind and compassionate to everyone, and up until she died, everyone remarked how sweet she was.

Louise will lovingly be remembered by her children Paula Rollow (Thomas) of Fairfax Station, VA, Lyda Pitman (Renald, deceased) of Madera, CA, Virginia Medeiros (Jerry Sitek) of Amissville, VA, and her daughter-in-law Gail Medeiros of Fredericksburg, VA. She was preceded in death by her beloved Joe of 52 years of marriage and her loving son Joe. Left to cherish her memory are her grandchildren Carey Mendiboure, Tera Pitman, Krystal Medeiros, Stephanie Rollow, Jesse Medeiros, and Thomas (Tommy) Rollow. Her great-grandchildren are Samantha Danielson, Alex Medeiros, and Hannah Danielson.

A celebration of life will be held on December 12, 2021 at 2 p.m. at South Run Baptist Church, 8712 Selger Dr, Springfield, VA. Inurnment will take place at a future date at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA where her remains will be placed in the columbarium alongside those of her husband.

In lieu of flowers Louise’s family would appreciate memorial contributions to one of her favorite charities Feed the Children, Smile Train, Alzheimers’ Association, or Fisher House Foundation.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.demainefunerals.com for the MEDEIROS family.