Obituary of Marian McGowan

Marian E. McGowan, 61, of Annandale, VA, died on March 11, 2011 at 10:00 am, following a two and a half year battle with cancer. She is survived by her husband, Tim McGowan and two daughters, Molly McQuaid and Lindsay McQuaid. She also is survived by her mother, Dorothy Engler of Radnor, PA, seven brothers and sisters: Ann (Engler) and Peter Clayton, D. Jean (Engler) Woltemate, Joan (Engler) and Paul Crabb, Janice (Engler) and Robert Jacobs, Daniel and Lorna Engler, Michael and Cynthia Engler, M. Patrice (Engler) Polgar, her former husband, John A. McQuaid, and three step children; Jennifer, Kevin, and Megan McGowan. She was preceded in death by her father, Earl M. Engler. A Pennsylvania native, Marian spent her formative years in Williamsport, PA before moving several times in her adolescent and teenage years to several Maryland and Philadelphia area locales, due to her father’s employment. Since 1975, Marian had been a resident of Virginia, residing initially in Arlington and, for more than thirty years, in Annandale. Marian served in administrative positions with numerous Northern Virginia and District of Columbia businesses during her career, mostly recently with Virginia Paving Corporation in Alexandria. An avid tennis enthusiast, Marian played for more than thirty years, through several reconstructive knee surgeries, before her illness deprived her of the ability to play. She was a mainstay for several decades in recreational tennis for the Greater Annandale Recreation Center as well as several other club teams in Northern Virginia. Following the separation from her first husband, Marian was instrumental in raising their two daughters. Everyone knew her for her wit, quick smile, many friends, and sense of humor, which was leavened occasionally with timely sarcasm. As the wife of a Foreign Service Officer, Marian lived in the Dominical Republic and the Philippines. In both countries, she worked with orphans and abused or underprivileged children. Her service was recognized by the Department of State with the Secretary of State’s Award for Outstanding Volunteerism Abroad in December, 2006. She is missed by her all that knew and loved her.