Aaron Cohen

Aaron Cohen, loving and devoted husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, died peacefully in his sleep surround by his family on Friday, February 18, 2011, at his home in Fort Collins, Colorado. He was 90. Aaron was born and raised in Schenectady, N.Y. Growing up, he excelled in athletics, participating in basketball, tennis, and gymnastics in high school. He attended Union College in Schenectady, where he majored in physics. Having studied during World War II, upon graduation he was hired by The General Electric Company as an engineer, where one of his first jobs involved the development of Sonar technology to detect enemy submarines. His work at G.E. also involved research and development of jet aircraft engines. G.E., however, offered Aaron more than a career. It was there that he met Grayce Cohn, another G.E. employee, who became his wife and best friend. They married in 1946 and built a family: daughter, Sharon, and son, Bruce. They shared a long life together filled with family and friends. Aaron and Grayce lived in Schenectady until, in 1961, GE transferred Aaron to Bethesda, Maryland where he worked on the Apollo space program. Soon after, Aaron started a new career taking his technical skills to the federal government. For nearly 20 years he worked in information technology as a deputy director for the U.S. Department of Commerce in Economic Development Administration. Upon Aaron's retirement in 1982, he and Grayce moved from Bethesda to Phoenix, Arizona where he helped Grayce run her small medical related business. For years, they would split their time between homes; wintering in Phoenix and summers in their ""second home"" in Ocean City, Maryland. In 2006, to be closer to their family, Aaron and Grayce sold their Phoenix home and moved to Fort Collins. Thereafter, they split their time between the foothills of Fort Collins and the beach in Ocean City. Besides his interest in computers and technology, Aaron loved animals, never missing an opportunity to pat a passing dog or cat. He also enjoyed tennis, classical music, and spending time walking the beach and boardwalk at his Ocean City home. Aaron is survived by his wife, Grayce; children Sharon and Bruce; grandchildren Jason, Adam, Danielle, and Sarah; and great-grandchildren Abe, Eliana, Zev, and Max. The family extends special and heartfelt thanks to Don Lange, Mario Burton, and the personnel of Pathways Hospice for the loving care they provided to Aaron at the end of his life. In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to Pathways Hospice of Larimer County in Fort Collins, CO www.pathways-care.org or Temple Bat Yam in Berlin, MD www.templebatyam-oc.orgPlans are being made for a Memorial Service/Celebration of Life to be held at Temple Bat Yam in Ocean City for early summer. There will be no service in Colorado.