Ethel Ruth Names

Ethel Ruth Names passed away peacefully on Friday, June 28, 2024 at her home in Fawn Lake, Virginia. She was 97 years old. She was born January 17, 1927 to Adolf and Helen (Kurtes) Schuster, immigrants from Germany and Hungary, respectively. Ethel was the second oldest of five siblings that included Dorothy, Adolf, Mildred and Albert. She was raised in Queens, Long Island in the shadow of the mirthful family sewing factory named AHDEAMA. The name was created using the first initial from each of the family members’ names. It was there that Ethel began sewing as soon “as her feet could reach the treadle.” She eventually became a proficient seamstress. In 1949 she was married to Francis Joseph Names, and lived in their first home in Laurelton, Long Island. In 1955 Francis and Ethel moved to a home they built next to Francis’s parents in Harrington Park, New Jersey. They had three children, Thomas Francis, Margaret Helen and David Edward. In 1992 Francis and Ethel moved to their retirement home that they designed, built and cherished at Fawn Lake in Spotsylvania, Virginia, a respite for many family gatherings. Francis predeceased Ethel in 2004. Despite contracting polio at an early age, Ethel became an active, tireless, forceful, and frugal Mother. In conjunction with her everyday responsibilities as a wife and mother, she took on the task of managing the family’s finances and investments. In addition, she could often be found in her sanctuary sewing room late into the night working on out-sourced sewing projects or mending clothes as well as designing and making wedding gowns for many family members. In midlife, and while working full-time at Medical Economics, Ethel graduated from Bergen County Community College in New Jersey with an Associate Degree in accounting. At various times, Ethel was a Cub Scout and Brownie Den Mother, volunteer at Our Lady of Victories Church in Harrington Park, secretary of the Harrington Park Republican Club, and President of the Northern Valley High School PTA where she spear-headed many important projects on behalf of the students. In retirement Ethel took computer classes at Germanna Community College and was Treasurer of the Fawn Lake Garden Club for over twenty years. Ethel is survived by her three children as well as three grandchildren: Jeffrey Thomas Names, Cheryl Margaret Names, and Michael Webster Sewell and one great-grandchild, Harper Joan Names. A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, August 10, 2024 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at Mullins and Thompson Funeral Service, 1621 Emancipation Highway, Fredericksburg, VA 22401. Ethel loved flowers but preferred that donations be made in her memory to a worthy cause such as Doctors Without Borders. www.doctorswithoutborders.org