Laura Lee Grossman's Obituary
Laura Lee (Johnson) Grossman, 85, of Spotsylvania, will be missed. On November 13, 2018, she unexpectedly lost her battle to carry on.
Laura Lee Peaks was born on March 24, 1933, to Duzzie Peaks, and growing up she was known as Sallie. She married Lynn Johnson on February 13, 1955 as he began his career as an Air Force Pilot. She moved from her native Corsicanna, Texas, and began her life with Lynn and the military. Together they had two sons, Lynn Jr and Michael. When they weren’t moving around, something that was hardly guaranteed in the military, Laura worked much of her time in fashion retail. Her passport was filled with travel stamps and visas from places like Paris and Milan, where she was a buyer for Saks Fifth Avenue and Nieman Marcus. Laura continued to work after her husband Lynn died in 1984.
In 1993, she met and fell in love with Bernard “Bernie” Grossman, originally from Brooklyn, a graduate of the Naval Academy, an officer in the Air Force, and then a dedicated, and (we would say) brilliant engineer. Bernie helped her regain her lust for life. They were funny and very happy together. Bernie, or “Bobby” as his brother and sister knew him, had been living and working in Alexandria. They were married on July 28, 1994, and he joined her in Bethesda. After she retired in1999 from Saks Jandel, they moved to Fawn Lake in Spotsylvania, Virginia.
She loved to cook for her family and friends, and of course, holiday meals often brought the family together. She was also passionate about gardening and their yard. A trip to the garden center was almost a daily thing, with a stop at the grocery store on the way home. She was a southern belle who believed that love was expressed by the fuss that one put up...but we all knew her love was true from her heart. She was always a gracious host and her kindness overflowed. And that kindness was most humorous when she would pass any small child in any public place. She would have to stop and be amazed at their “cuteness,” and of course get them to smile.
She will be missed most by her husband, Bernard Grossman; her two sons, Mykl and Lyn Johnson; her daughters-in-law, Catherine Revel, Kristin Johnson, Carla Johnson; her five grandchildren, Catherine, Glen, Nicolas, Gregory, and Zachary; her sister, Willie Mae; her cousin Millage Peaks; and numerous nieces, nephews and others from her loving extended family.
A graveside service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, July 26, 2019 at Arlington National Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, her family requests that donations be made in her name to the charity of your choice.
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