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Obituary for Athanasia Cushing



Athanasia “Sue” Cushing died August 7 at Reston Hospital Center due to complications with ALS. Her daughter, Alexandra Cushing of New York City, was by her side and holding her hand. 

Ms. Cushing was born January 18, 1953, in Los Angeles California, the daughter of Peter and Eugenia Konstantouros. The daughter of Greek immigrants, she valued education from an early age and worked her way through college to receive her bachelor’s degree in journalism from California State University-Long Beach, and two master’s degrees: one in film/cinema and video studies from the University of Southern California, and a second in communications from American University. 

She began her rewarding career as the public information officer for the City of Falls Church, Virginia. Subsequently she held several executive positions at national telecommunications companies, to include Verizon, MCI and GTE, before making an indelible mark with several companies in the defense industry, including BAE Systems, Raytheon and lastly, ManTech. 

Until last month, Ms. Cushing served as Vice President of Enterprise Marketing & Communications at ManTech International Corporation, in Herndon, Virginia, where she lived up to her personal mission to execute big, never-been-done-before ideas and enhance the company’s brand. Ms. Cushing wanted to teach the world how, in her words, the company could “solve the world’s problems – from the everyday to the epic.” 

Family, friends and colleagues knew her as energetic, optimistic, strong-willed and funny, with a wit as sharp as her eye for details. She was truly inspirational, with a fighter’s spirit and she taught those who knew and loved her much about grace, determination and dignity as she battled the disease. Ms. Cushing led an abundant life. She was a lifelong learner with special interests in art, history and film – subjects that helped her excel when challenging her friends to trivia games. Ms. Cushing also was an enthusiastic traveler and storyteller, always looking forward to unraveling untold tales of the new places she would visit. She especially enjoyed eating and drinking her way through her travels. 

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be directed to The ALS Association.