Obituaries

She moved to the United States in 1948, eventually settling in Washington, where she worked for the Indian Embassy and as an administrative assistant with several banks. She was an active member of Western Presbyterian Church in the District and the 20th Century Club.

She leaves no immediate survivors.

Salvatore Joseph TetaMarketing Executive

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Salvatore Joseph Teta, 77, a retired marketing executive with Pacific-Scientific Corp. of Rockville, died Feb. 11 of a heart attack at Washington Hospital Center. A resident of West River, he formerly lived in New Carrollton and Lanham.

Mr. Teta was born in Brooklyn and studied electronics at the RCA Institute in New York City. He also studied at Southeastern University. He served as a Coast Guard radioman from 1948 to 1951 and then worked in research and development for a number of aerospace and defense-industry firms, including Electromechanical Research and Aero Geo Astro Corp. He joined Pacific-Scientific in the early 1970s and retired in 1980 as vice president of sales in the marketing division.

When his children were growing up in the 1960s, Mr. Teta coached winning teams in softball and football for the New Carrollton Boys Club (now Boys and Girls Club). He also served as president of the Suburban Aquatic Swim Club in Lanham.

He was a member of Elks Lodge No. 1778 in Riverdale Park, the Coast Guard Auxiliary, the Knights of Columbus, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion. He enjoyed fishing, gardening and hunting.

Survivors include his wife of 53 years, Regina C. Teta of West River; four children, Salvatore V. Teta of Annapolis, Daniel P. Teta of Bowie, Cynthia M. Lesser of Arnold and Suzanne M. Ponticello of Annapolis; three sisters; and six grandchildren

Ruth Mortenson SowashProofreader, Volunteer

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Ruth Mortenson Sowash, 86, a former proofreader for the Congressional Indexing Service and an association secretary, volunteer and lifelong learner, died at Hillhouse Inc. assisted living facility in Bath, Maine. She had complications from a stroke that occurred in January.

Mrs. Sowash was born to Swedish parents in Waukegan, Ill., and received a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Chicago in 1942. She worked for a few years as administrative assistant to the university's president, Robert M. Hutchins.

In 1945, she married William B. Sowash, a World War II Navy veteran and another University of Chicago graduate. Soon after, her husband joined the State Department as a political officer, and the couple settled in Bethesda. Overseas assignments took them to Spain, El Salvador, Guatemala, Argentina and Honduras.

In the late 1970s and 1980s, Mrs. Sowash worked as a proofreader for the Congressional Indexing Service and volunteered to read to the blind.

Mrs. Sowash and her husband moved to Maplewood Park Place in Bethesda in 1996, where she served as secretary for the Maryland Continuing Care Residents Association. She also volunteered by knitting infant wear for local charities and making surprise gifts for children hospitalized at the National Institutes of Health.