Ethel Lauterbach Sellman

ETHEL ONETTA ESTELLE LAUTERBACH SELLMAN Ethel L Sellman, a retired French teacher at Aberdeen High School died of complications from a stroke at home in Aberdeen on April 28, 2011 . She was 92 years of age. The daughter of Ethel (Pearson) and William V. Lauterbach, she was born at home in Baltimore City and attended Baltimore City Public Schools until the family moved to Mt Airy in 1928 where her parents ran Hillside Poultry Farm. She graduated from Mt. Airy High School in 1933 at the age of 14 and began attending Western Maryland College in Westminster. She graduated from W~stern Maryland College in 1937 with majors in French, Algebra and Social Studies. That September she began her teaching career in Poolesville, Maryland, teaching French, Mathematics and Social Studies to high school children. During this time she met and married Charles Griffith Sellman in 1939. As this was war time and Charles worked for the C and P Telephone Company, they moved to Gaithersburg, Maryland, Laurel, Maryland, and finally to Aberdeen in 1946 with their two daughters, Ethel and Sally. In 1950, Ethel returned to the classroom as a 6th grade teacher to replace an ill colleague. By 1953 she was teaching elementary school children in a boarded off wing of Aberdeen High School as it was being built. After the school was completed she began teaching mathematics to high school children again. In 1956 she became the French Teacher at the High School and several years later oversaw the installation of their Language Lab. Her career became "Global" during the next 23 years as Ethel established an exchange program, the Aberdeen-L'Union lumelage with an English teacher and her students in L'Union, France. During the summers she would take groups of her students to France for 2 weeks. Many friendships, fond memories, and cultural understandings developed during these trips. She was awarded her Master's Degree of Education from Western Maryland College in 1968. In 1969 she attended The University of Toulouse in Toulouse, France and studied French and Russian and went to culinary classes in the evenings. After these classes she became well known in Harford County for her 8 to 10 course French dinners she would prepare for all of her friends. In 1970 she attended Millersville State College for The French Immersion Program. In 1971 she studied French at The Universite' de Dijon in Dijon, France and in 1973, she went to l'Universite' Catholique de l'Ouest in Pau, France. Ethel has always been involved with many educational and service organizations throughout her life. In 1956 she became a member of Delta Kappa Gamma, an honorary educational sorority and served at the state and local level as President, Vice President and Executive Secretary for the organization. In 1964 along with several others wives of The Aberdeen Lions, she established and became a charter member of The Aberdeen Lioness Club. She served as President twice and as Treasurer for many years. She also worked with The Lions Association for Sight and Hearing, District 22A. In 1993 she was awarded the highest Honor a Lion or Lioness can achieve and became a Melvin Jones Fellow for Humanitarian efforts. She was also a President and Vice-President for the Harford County retired Teacher's Association and is a Life member of The Maryland State Teacher's Association and The National Education Association. In December, 2000 Ethel was elected to The Harford County Public Schools Educators Hall of Fame and a few years later was honored to be chosen by The Aberdeen Heritage Committee as an "Aberdeen Treasure". Survivors include a daughter Ethel M. Sellman of Aberdeen, Maryland, a daughter Sally Sellman Gombar and her husband, Robert C. Gombar of Annapolis, a granddaughter, Carrie Lynn LaBar and a great-granddaughter, Isabella Alexandra Tiedeken and her father William A. Tiedeken of Towson, Maryland, a sister Beatrice Lauterbach Ward of Bel Air, Maryland and many nieces and nephews. family will receive friends on Saturday, April 30 from 1-3 and 5-7 pm in the family owned Tarring-Cargo Funeral Home, P.A. of Aberdeen where a funeral service officiated by Fr. Bill Burt will be held Monday, May 2 at 11am. Interment will be at Monocacy Cemetery in Beallsville, MD on Tuesday, May 3 at 11:30am. Funeral Home: Tarring-Cargo Funeral Home 333 South Parke Street Aberdeen, MD US 21001