Obituary of Verna C. Preston

Verna C. Preston Verna Cooper Preston formerly of Aberdeen died December 16th, 2013 in Rochester, New York. She was 91 years old. Born in Aldino, Maryland where her parents Nelson and Myrtle Cooper operated the general store, she was the younger of two daughters. Verna was baptized in and formerly a member of Hopewell United Methodist Church. Later in life she became a member of Grace United Methodist near her home in Aberdeen. Verna was also a member of the women’s philanthropic group P.E.O. for more than 50 years. Verna graduated Suma Cum Laude from Western Maryland College with a biology degree. Following college she taught high school for two years in Glen Burnie and then returned to Aberdeen to help her aging parents, taking employment as a teller at the Havre de Grace Banking and Trust. A member of the Grace Methodist choir over 60 years, Verna met her future husband Charles Minton Preston soon after joining. When Verna and Minton started their family, Verna retired after 10 years working at the Havre de Grace bank. The bank president then sold to Verna for $1 the small insurance company that she had run for him. As the business thrived, Verna became known as the first woman to own an insurance agency in the DelMarVa and Pennsylvania area. Verna Preston Insurance, Inc. was the company she ran and grew for 51 years until her retirement shortly after her 84th birthday. During the past five years, Verna was a resident in assisted-living at the Rochester Presbyterian Home where she was loved, comforted and cared for by an extraordinary staff that was her and her children’s extended family. Verna Preston is survived by two children: son Brian M. Preston and his partner, Elier Suarez of Rochester, New York; and daughter Marilyn P. Bobby of Bel Air, Maryland. She is also survived by a niece and two nephews, the children of her sister Virginia Cooper Cruit; and a cousin, Gladys Hutcheson of Mineral Point, Wisconsin. Calling hours will be Saturday, December 21st at 10 AM in the parlor of Grace United Methodist Church with the funeral to follow at 11:00. Interment will be at Rock Run Cemetery. Home Rochester, New York Birthplace Aldino, MD Donations Rochester Presbyterian Home 256 Thurston Road Rochester, New York 14619