Obituary of Anne Vermillion Gleason

Anne Vermillion Gleason died peacefully on May 3, 2014 following a brief illness. She was born on November 2, 1932 to James Galbraith Vermillion and Elizabeth Hallock Vermillion in Newport, Rhode Island, joining an older brother, Winthrop Hallock Vermillion. She graduated from St. Timothy’s School in 1951 and earned her BA from Wheelock College in 1955. Anne was married to Edward Stone Gleason on June 18, 1955. Together they lived a life rich in meaning and purpose, touching thousands with their love, grace, wit and wisdom. Anne’s love for humanity took many forms. First and foremost, she was a devoted wife. Theirs was a marriage for the ages. She fell in love with ESG as a teenager and loved him faithfully for sixty-five years. Children were at the heart of their life. Together they raised three daughters, Sarah Gleason Ross, Persis Gleason Elkins, and Eliza Gleason Kean. That family grew to include three sons-in-laws, Robert M. Ross, Tod S Elkins, and Patrick D. Kean, and soon thereafter, seven grandchildren, Benjamin Gleason Ross, Matthew Mather Ross, Nora Hallock Gleason Elkins, Tess Avery Gleason Elkins, Avery Ashe Kean, Louisa Gleason Kean and Lila Frances Kean. In addition to her children and grandchildren, Anne leaves many nephews and nieces and two sisters-in-law, Marlene Vermillion and Persis Gleason Laverack. She was pre-deceased by another sister-in-law, Noel Gay Gleason Lincoln. A woman before her time, Anne was the original wonder woman. Her energy knew no bounds. Not only did she work to support her husband’s career, serving as a gracious hostess, loving wife and mother, she was mentor and counselor to countless students and parishioners at the many schools and parishes where she and ESG served- St. Peter’s, Arlington, VA, Christ Church, Exeter, NH, Philips Exeter Academy, Exeter, NH, Noble and Greenough School, Dedham, MA, Virginia Theological Seminary, Alexandria, VA and Forward Movement Publications, Cincinnati, OH. In addition to her many responsibilities as the rector’s, school minister’s, headmaster’s director of development and editor’s wife, Anne always remained true to her love of children and teaching, working full-time as an elementary school teacher. She taught first grade in Norfolk, Virginia and later founded one of the nation’s first Head Start Programs in Exeter, NH. She co-led a program for mentally challenged students in Rockingham County, NH. From 1972-1986, she taught pre-school at Dedham Country Day School in Dedham, MA and from 1987-1995, she taught kindergarten at the Potomac School in McLean, VA. From 1995-2005, she was an executive assistant at Forward Movement Publications in Cincinnati, OH. In every role she filled, Anne brought an eye for beauty and attention to detail. She was a poet, a teacher, a gardener, a counselor and an artist, one who always saw to the heart of the matter and one who always sought justice, goodness and truth. Every home she lived in was an expression of her care- a warm and charming manifestation of what mattered most to her- welcoming the other. Her legendary gardens were another means to express joy, bursting with color and life. Thousands were touched by her love either in her classrooms, around her dining table, or through her poetry. Anne Vermillion Gleason had a great gift of intuition and an ability to draw connections, connecting people one to another. Through her love and through her words, she helped us all to recognize the wonder in this world and in each other. In lieu of flowers, donations in her name may be made to Children’s Cancer Research Fund, Donation Processing Center, P.O. Box 96790, Washington, DC 20090-6790, ATTN: Anne Vermillion Gleason Memorial – Brain Tumor. A memorial service will take place on Saturday April 18, 2015, 11AM, at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church, 2700 Whitehaven Parkway, NW, Washington, DC 20017