DOROTHY McCORMICK

McCORMICK DOROTHY BRAGDON MCCORMICK FOUNDER, COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL OF MCLEAN Dorothy Bragdon McCormick (age 96), born on March 31, 1922 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to the late Ruth Josephine Hughes and Major General John Stewart Bragdon, passed away peacefully in her home on April 11, 2018. Mrs. McCormick, a widely known and loved visionary leader in early childhood education, was a long time resident of McLean, Virginia. She is survived by her six children Robert McCormick of McLean, Josephine Laux of Mexico City, Peter McCormick of Greenville, SC, Stewart McCormick of McLean, Brigid Sherman of Galveston,Texas, Anthony McCormick of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and six grandchildren. Dorothy, her late sister Ruth Bragdon Donovan and late brother John Bragdon, led the life of Army children, educated in the Philippines, where her father served on the staff of General Douglas MacArthur, and at several other military postings around the world. Ultimately she settled in Washington, DC, near to her father, who was classmate, close friend, and advisor to President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Dorothy graduated from Garden City, NY High School Class of 1938 and attended Pembroke College before graduating from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in 1942. Following college, she was commissioned in the U. S. Navy (WAVEs), attaining the rank of Lieutenant, JG, privileged as one of the few armed female naval couriers. Upon the conclusion of World War II, she formally entered service in the OSS, the precursor to the CIA On Veterans' Day, November 11, 1948 in Washington, DC, Dorothy married the late Robert Louis Laing McCormick, a well known and respected Republican political leader and strategist. Over the next dozen years she transitioned into the role of mother, homemaker, and volunteer for various organizations, including several years as a docent at the Smithsonian Institution Museum of Natural History. In 1960, Dorothy formed a play group for the children of friends. As a psychology major, she had a strong interest in early childhood development which, combined with her natural entrepreneurial gift and pioneering drive, evolved into the creation of Country Play School in 1964, situated in the lower level of the family home. By 1971, the school of 84 children had outgrown its space. Dorothy then purchased the Happy Hill School at Langley Fork in McLean, reestablishing it as the Country Day School. Since its founding the school has served generations of children as a pre-eminent center of early childhood education in the Washington, DC area. During her stewardship of Country Day School, Dorothy found time to earn a master's degree in early childhood education from Wheelock College, in 1985. Over the course of her career she received the McLean Business and Professional Club Woman of Achievement award in 1970 and the Certificate of Achievement from the American Association of University Women in 1998. Dorothy retired in 2002, spending her following years archiving school history and devoting time to her family. She is and will always be dearly missed by all she touched and loved. A memorial service will be held 11 a.m., June 16, 2018 at St. Luke Church, 7001 Georgetown Pike, McLean, VA 22101. In lieu of flowers, donations my be made to the Country Day School of McLean.