Carmeline Violette Zimmer, Esq.

Born March 27, 1947 in Bethesda, Maryland to Sgt. Maj. Fernand (USMC) and Carmen Aurora ("Ora") Violette, to whom she was incredibly devoted until their respective deaths, her early years were marked by the many re-locations associated with military family life, during which she attended 13 schools in 12 years. She was graduated as a National Merit Scholar in 1965 from Havelock High School in North Carolina and, the first in her family to attend college, earned her Bachelor's Degree in History from The University of Maryland. She married her high-school sweetheart, Andrew James ("Bud") Zimmer, in 1969, and relocated to Virginia Beach in 1970.

A lifelong learner and extraordinarily devoted parent, Carmeline earned a Master's Degree in History from Old Dominion University (ODU) in 1977 while raising her first two children Andrew Matthew and Bretta Marie. After son Benjamin was born in 1978, she continued studying Public Policy at Regent University.

A staunch advocate for her son Ben and others with special needs, she spent more than a decade working as a Special Education Counselor in the Parent Resource Center for the Virginia Beach City Public School System, earning a Master's Degree in Special Education from ODU while also working full time and caring for her family. She went on to teach special education courses as an adjunct professor at ODU.

In 2000, at age 53, she earned her Juris Doctorate (law degree) from Regent University, graduating in the top ten of her class. She passed the Virginia Bar Exam on her first attempt, and worked as a Juvenile Public Defender for the City of Virginia Beach. In 2003, after the birth of her first grandchild, she co-founded the boutique law firm Zimmer & Lewis with her daughter, Bretta, focusing on representing abused and neglected children in foster care and custody cases. When asked in later years what she did as an attorney, she proudly stated that she advocated for children. After retiring from Zimmer & Lewis in 2020, she remained an active member in good standing with the Virginia State Bar until her death.

In addition to her years of hard work in the community and her insatiable intellectual pursuits, Carmeline found the deepest satisfaction in her role as loyal wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend, consistently putting the others in her life first. She was known universally for the warm, accepting, inviting environment that she created at home, for her wryly frank, yet always kind and authentic personality, genuine interest in others, and boundless generosity.

She is survived by her husband of 56 years, Andrew James ("Bud") Zimmer, D.D.S, their three children Andrew Matthew Zimmer (Kim), Bretta Zimmer Lewis, Esq. (Darren), and Benjamin Thomas Zimmer. She is also survived by her six grandchildren: William Edmond ("Ned") Lewis, Samuel Edward Lewis, James Andrew Lewis, Rachael Violette Rose Zimmer, Isaac Nathaniel Zimmer, and Genevieve Rebekah Zimmer. She is also survived by her brother USN Capt. (Ret.) Thomas Fernand Violette (Mary), and sister Joyce Ann Kiser, as well as nephews Thomas Fernand Violette and USN Commander (Ret.) Michael Andrew Violette (Courtney), Jeffrey Scott Kiser (Molly) and Nieces Aimee Violette Burke, and Jennifer Kiser Jernigan (Ben).

A viewing will be held Monday August 18, 2025 from 6:00-8:00 pm at Rosewood-Kellum Funeral Home, 601 N. Witchduck Rd, Virginia Beach, Virginia 23462. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Tuesday August 19, 2025 at 10:00 am at the St. Gregory the Great Catholic Church, 5345 Virginia Beach, Virginia 23462, followed by a reception at Rosewood-Kellum Funeral Home.