LaVerne Evelyn Papian - Obituary

aVerne Evelyn Papian (née Rosenow) passed peacefully on June 2, 2024, just shy of her 100th birthday. Born on September 4, 1924 in St. Louis, Missouri, she received her B.S. and M.S. in Applied Mathematics, being named the 1944 Yearbook “The Hatchet” Queen and holding the amazing distinction of being the first woman accepted to the Graduate School of Engineering of Washington University in St. Louis. LaVerne began her career as a computer programmer in the mid 1950s. In addition to her dedication to her career, she also devoted time to two non-profits in their early years: The Women’s Center in Vienna, Virginia, to help abused women with counseling, legal advice, transportation, and childcare, and the Rural Heritage Society in Shadyside, Maryland, to create the Captain Salem Avery Museum dedicated to the life of watermen in the 1860s. LaVerne loved dancing, especially ballet, sailing the Chesapeake Bay, gardening and landscaping, creating works of art with stained glass, and producing a plethora of items with crochet, knitting, quilting, appliqués, embroidery, and cross-stitch. In addition to her parents, LaVerne was preceded in death by her beloved husband, William N. Papian and son, Frank W. Bubb III. She is survived by her children, John M. and J. Daniel Bubb, and Lisa A. Jorgensen (née Bubb); step-children, Amy E. and Judith L. Papian; grandchildren, Daniel E. and David W. Bubb, Andrew T. and Michael N. Geuss, Shelby L. Nelson, Erik D. Jorgensen, and Libby and Maya Papian; great-grandchildren, Roman, Andy, Claire, Tre, Reagan, Owen, Cate, Ja’Lia, and Penelope; and nephews, Robert L. and David S. Kurtz. Friends and family are invited to celebrate LaVerne’s life on Thursday, June 13 from 11:30 am until a funeral service begins at 12:30 pm at the Kalas Funeral Home & Crematory, 2973 Solomons Island Road, Edgewater, MD. Interment will follow at Maryland Veterans Cemetery, 1122 Sunrise Beach Road, Crownsville, MD. Online condolences may be made using the Memories tab on this page.