Obituary of Carol Snitzer

Carol Everhart Snitzer died peacefully at home in Springfield, Virginia, on Thursday, Jan 12, surrounded by friends and family. She was 87. A skilled lifelong gardener, she was known as “The Garden Lady” for her superb garden around her Greenspring Village apartment. Carol was raised in New Kensington, Pa, and graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a degree in physics. She married Lawrence Snitzer in 1947. They settled in Annandale Virginia in 1960, after graduate school stints in Wisconsin, and 10 years in New Jersey. While raising two boys, Carol was active in numerous community and school activities. She was a founding member of the local garden club; she was active with AAUW. She was a citizen activist in the 1960s, lobbying in favor of sensible land use in Fairfax County VA. Political activism drew Carol to the League of Women Voters; she lobbied members of Congress on behalf of the League in the 70s and 80s. She was passionately committed to educating women, and was a long-time member of the Northern Virginia PEO Z Chapter. She was a charter member of Providence Presbyterian Church in Fairfax, whose original members began meeting in 1963. She served in every capacity available to a lay person in the church. She sang in the choir for 40 years, the lone woman in the tenor section. When Larry retired from the federal government, he turned a gardening hobby into a small landscaping business. After he died in 1979, Carol and her older son John built the business into a well-recognized respected design-build firm serving primarily northern Virginia clients. Carol and John planted what are now some of the oldest trees and garden spaces on the Providence Presbyterian Church property. Carol and Larry traveled extensively with the family, throughout Europe, North America and the Caribbean. After Larry died, Carol continued to travel, visiting every continent except Antarctica AFTER her 65th birthday. Turmoil in world events seemed to follow her – she was in Egypt when Anwar Sadat was assassinated, in Moscow when Boris Yeltzin ordered the shelling of Parliament, on her way to China when the student uprisings in Tiananmen Square were squelched. A voyage on the Queen Elizabeth II was interrupted by engine trouble, leaving the ship drifting in the North Atlantic for days. Carol and her fellow passengers organized a talent show to fill the time and reduce the anxiety. Family and friends were vitally important to Carol. The Snitzer household was the gathering place for her sons’ friends and sports teams, and she often hosted family cook-outs and neighborhood dinner parties. Especially close to her nieces and nephew and their families, Carol decorated her refrigerator door with photos of multiple generations. Her legendary Christmas cookies enlivened the holidays every year. Carol is survived by sons John and Jim. A memorial service will be held at Providence Presbyterian Church in Fairfax, Virginia on Friday, January 27 at 11:00 am, reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the PEO Scholar Awards and sent to: P. E. O. Executive Office Attn: Scholar Awards 3700 Grand Avenue Des Moines, Iowa 50312-2899 (In memory of Carol Snitzer)