Edward J. Cosgrove Sr.

Funeral: 11 a.m. Monday at St. Maria Goretti Catholic Church in Arlington. Burial will follow in Moore Memorial Gardens. Visitation: 6 to 7 p.m Sunday, with rosary at 7 p.m., Sunday at St. Maria Goretti.

Edward "Cosy" Cosgrove Sr. was born in Shenandoah, Pa., in 1912. He joined the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s where he served as a mess sergeant and planted trees throughout Virginia. In 1937, he went to work for the Sikorsky-Vought Corp. in Stratford, Conn., and worked in a lab where Igor Sikorsky invented and test flew the first helicopter (video may be viewed on YouTube under Centenarian Ed Cosgrove). In 1939, he met the love of his life, Olga Bottolene, and they were married for 66 years. He was transferred by Vought Aircraft to Dallas where the company later became known as the LTV Corporation. During his 37-year career with Vought, he worked on the F4U Corsair, the F-8 Crusader, the A-7 Corsair and the S-3A, until he retired as the chief of Quality Control.

He was an avid hunter, an officer in the Sako Rifle Association, the Arlington Sportsman's Club and the Vought Quarter Century Club. He was very active in St. Maria Goretti's Catholic Church for over 60 years. In the late 1990s, at age 83, he worked with the Arlington Food Bank, driving his Ford pickup loaded with food that he acquired from local grocery stores and delivered to shelters throughout Arlington.

The family wishes to thank the staff and residents at C.A.R.E. Nursing Center and CMS Healthcare in Early for the wonderful friendships, compassionate care and service provided to our beloved "Cosy" and to our family.

Survivors: He is survived by his twin sons, Edward and wife, Debbie, James; grandsons, Edward III and wife, Meisha, Jason, Chancy and wife, Emily, Jeremy and wife, Raechel; seven great-grandchildren; and sister, Agnes Habib of Pennsylvania.