Laura Conroy Harris

Born in Orange, NJ to Jacqueline and Harry Conroy, Laura was raised by her mother and step-father Albert Schrage alongside two older sisters, Regina and Faith. Some of her fondest memories growing up were of the summers spent with her grandparents, affectionately known as Nanny and Poppy. In her childhood, Laura remembered tending a garden with her grandfather, bottle-feeding a calf, apple picking from the top of a hay wagon, swimming in Gem Lake, walking through a dell, and picking (and eating!) wild raspberries.

These early memories fostered an immense love of animals and a passion for the outdoors. A Master Naturalist, Laura had a knack for connecting with nature: she swam with a sea turtle, touched a dolphin, and befriended a chipmunk. As a child, Laura braved her fear of heights and visited her first national park, Great Smoky Mountains. She spent the rest of her life learning about and visiting as many parks as she could. Laura’s NPS Passport book is bursting at the seams, too big for the binding. She saw glaciers and geysers, stalactites and stalagmites, slept on a volcano, witnessed a Hawaiian triple rainbow, and saw the Southern Cross. Laura sailed the British Virgin Islands, meandered through Monet’s gardens (twice!), and saw fireworks over the Pacific Ocean.

Laura loved school and graduated with many degrees, most recently earning her LL.M. in International Environmental Law from American University’s Washington College of Law. She worked at the National Zoo, at NASA, and even on a movie set. She climbed the Eiffel Tower, visited Stonehenge (and Foamhenge), and went to a party on top of the World Trade Center. Laura traveled to 47 states, missing only Alaska, Oregon, and Mississippi.

Every season of Laura’s life was marked with a series of adventures, but they all paled in comparison to the years she shared with her husband, Arthur, and their children Emma and Michael. She taught her kids to read, sent them Valentine’s Day boxes well into adulthood, was a Girl Scout Leader (after being a Girl Scout herself), played the Easter Bunny, took them to see an active volcano one New Year’s Eve, and sewed their Halloween costumes, no matter how obscure the character. Laura was especially proud to attend Michael’s Ph.D. dissertation defense this November. She did everything she could to love and support her kids. She was the best mom.

Laura held an ardent appreciation for the little things in life. She still has the coin purse awarded to her after winning a reading contest in the first grade. And she similarly held tightly onto the treasures given to her by her children, like the paper globe and hand-bound book that sit on her bookshelf today.

She couldn’t just adopt one animal in need of a safe home; Laura’s adoration of the animals she fostered and rescued over the years seemed to know no bounds. She first had Arthur Kitty, then cats Whitney and Danielle, Captain Jack Sparrow (blind but named after a pirate with 20/20 vision), and Molly. She raised multiple litters of kittens, finding them all homes. Laura loved her blind dog Huckleberry, named after the neighbor’s beagle she adored growing up. And who could forget Darwin, namesake of Charles Darwin’s HMS Beagle and gifted vocalist.

Laura was an avid quilter and gardener. She loved everything British – their gardens, TV shows, and, of course, English Breakfast tea. Laura often talked about her time spent living in Maine and enjoyed visiting, always stopping at Wild Oats Bakery for an apple clam. She loved Christmas and was so happy to spend it with everyone together this past year.

Laura is survived by her husband, Arthur Harris, her children, Emma Harris and Michael Harris, her mother, Jacqueline Schrage, her sisters, Regina Conroy and Faith Conroy (Jim Wilson), her brothers-in-law, John Harris (Leslie Kang) and Harry Harris, and her beagle, Darwin. She is preceded in death by her father, Harry Conroy, her step-father who raised her, Albert Schrage, and countless animals she rescued.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Friends of the Fairfax County Animal Shelter or A Forever Home Rescue Foundation – the shelters where she rescued her beloved