Ann Stokes, 84, of Arlington, Virginia, passed peacefully at Virginia Hospital Center, Arlington, VA., on Saturday, April 30, 2016. Born November 25, 1931, in Bethlehem, PA., to Robert Sayre, Jr. and Miriam Reed Taylor. Ann was formerly married to William D. Stokes and had three children, William Desmond Stokes, Jr., Julia Marie Stokes, and Stafford Judson Stokes.

Raised in the Moravian community founded in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Ann attended the Moravian Preparatory School, class of 1950, then Colby Junior College, class of 1952, and the University of Pennsylvania, class of 1954, where she received a B.S. in Occupational Therapy.

A devoted member of Truro Anglican Church she served on the alter guild for many years. She also served her community as a volunteer through the Junior League of Washington. Her greatest joy in life rests with her relationships with each of her kids. She always attended every activity/athletic event and it was common place for Jud to practice wrestling moves with her in the kitchen. Ann was an incredible mother, friend, confidant, homemaker, and all round kind, compassionate, loving person. She was incredibly nurturing and supportive of everything the kids did. Everyone was welcome in her home and she accepted everyone equally. We often found her deep in conversation with the friends of her kids. Everyone could discuss pretty much anything with her and they always felt comfortable, accepted, and appreciated. That’s probably the reason she was considered the “Neighborhood Mom” plus the cookie drawer was always full and everyone in the neighborhood knew where it was.

Ann went back into the working world late in life after bringing up her children. She was an accountant for TruLand Corporation and then reinvented herself as a sales person in the kitchen and bath design industry. During this time she trained herself to become a draftsmen and then worked for F.A McGonagal as a kitchen and bathroom designer. She then became a certified kitchen designer and an active member of the National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA). Her design work took her to many other companies where her expertise in the field grew. At one point she won an all-expense paid cruise for 8-days to the Caribbean. Everyone in her field and all the vendors admired and respected her. Her hard work and diligence to detail made her career in kitchen and bath design very successful.

Ann was a woman of many talents. She could fix anything from electrical wiring to the washing machine. She could paint (I mean the entire house), wallpaper, upholster furniture, design and make cornices and curtains, do woodworking projects (dental molding throughout the house), lawn maintenance, sewing, knitting, crocheting, she was an artist, and athlete. One day upon arriving home, when Ann was at the ripe young age of 74, I found her outside hard at work with sawhorses set up and working the drill and electric saw. When I laughed and asked her what she was making, she said “I am making covers for the lower level window so that the snow, rain, and leaves won’t clog up the drains.” She was something else and pretty much could have been a master carpenter at 74 years of age. She is at peace now, but knowing her, she is not resting but helping the real master carpenter do His work.

Survivors: In addition to her parents Robert S. and Miriam Reed Taylor, she was preceded in death by her former husband, William D. Stokes, Sr. and nephew, Keith Neaville, and lifelong friend Judy Schadt Graham. Her love and affection towards us all will be forever cherished in the minds and hearts of her children; William Desmond Stokes, Jr. and wife Judy of Overland Park, KS, her daughter Julia Marie Stokes of Arlington, VA., and Stafford Judson (Jud) Stokes and wife Sandy of Chesapeake, VA., along with four wonderful grandchildren, Caroline Alexandra Neaville, Lee Judson Stokes and wife Melanie, Emily Sarah Hurrell Stokes Chappelear and husband Chris, Mark Bradford Stokes and wife Michelle, and nine great-grandchildren, Madison, Joseph, Isabelle and William Neaville, Macie and Jenna Stokes, Francesca Chappelear, and Maxwell and Zachary Stokes. Her loving memory will also live on through her three surviving sisters, Jane Hammond and husband Richard, Mary Baker, and Elizabeth Kindt, along with all her wonderful nieces and nephews, and all who have known her.

Services: Private