Ross Edwin Cowey

Intelligence Official, Arms Control Expert

Loving husband and father Ross Edwin Cowey, age 89, passed away on April 15, 2024 in Bethesda, Maryland, of complications from pneumonia. He is survived by his wife Colette Cowey, his children John Cowey, Sara Cowey (Bruce Solomon) , David Cowey (Jody Handley), and Catherine Cowey (Andy Springer); step-children Eric Claude (Michelle), Christina Claude, Gregor Claude (Emma Ridgway); and twelve beloved grandchildren and step-grandchildren, as well as his sisters Judith Leys and Ellen Ewens and numerous nieces and nephews. A first marriage to Ann Breen ended in divorce.

He was born and raised in Middletown, Rhode Island to the late Felix and Edith Cowey, the third of four children. He received his B.A. from Brown University and M.A. from the University of Pennsylvania. He served four years in the Navy, two on the aircraft carrier USS Leyte, achieving the rank of Lieutenant JG.

Mr. Cowey began his intelligence career in 1963 as a military and current intelligence analyst with the CIA, producing intelligence reports on Soviet military activity in Cuba and on the withdrawal of Soviet troops from the island in the wake of the missile crisis of October 1962. Later, as an analyst in the CIA’s Office of National Estimates, then as a branch chief in the Agency’s Office of Strategic Research, and finally as Director of the Office of Strategic Affairs in the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research, he served as a behind-the-scenes advisor to the negotiations which led to the 1971 treaty banning the deployment of weapons of mass destruction on the seabed and to the discussions which led to the first two Strategic Arms Limitations Treaties with the former Soviet Union, signed in 1972 and 1979. From 1972 to 1974 Mr. Cowey also served in a liaison capacity with British military intelligence in London, U.K.

During the latter part of his career, Mr. Cowey served in a number of staff and administrative positions at CIA. At the time of his retirement in 1990 he was executive assistant to the Executive Director of the CIA, the number three official at the Agency. He received the Agency’s Career Intelligence Medal.

In retirement, Mr. Cowey accompanied his wife, Colette, on her assignments to Senegal and the Dominican Republic in her capacity as an official of the US Agency for International Development. He pursued his pastimes of traveling the world, sailing, and hiking and in his later years particularly enjoyed walking along the Potomac River and the C&O canal. He contributed to his community by serving seven years as President of the Sumner Village Condominium Association.

Mr. Cowey was always ready with a laugh, joke, and ever-present smile. He made those around him feel welcome, accepted, and embraced. He could create such fast and deep connections that he could make anywhere feel like home.

Throughout life he provided counsel and advice to family and friends, often sharing one of his personal mantras: Be firm, fair, and friendly. He passed on his love of the sea to his children, spending numerous blissful beachside vacations teaching them how to make his famous drip sand castles, body surfing, and to never turn their back to the ocean.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at Little Flower Church Bethesda on April 22. A memorial service and burial is planned for July in Middletown, RI. Donations in his memory may be made to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.