Eileen Ross, a devoted wife, mother, sister, aunt, and grandmother with a passion for art and architecture, passed away on Wednesday, June 23, 2021. She was 73.

Eileen was a delightfully quirky person, unafraid to express herself through her work, her fashion, or her relationships with the many people whose lives were enriched by her eccentricities. Knowing Eileen meant learning about life and love through the lens of a woman who saw the world in ways most could never see it. She had an infectious joy that filled whatever room she entered and lifted the spirits of everyone within earshot.

Though her professional and personal accomplishments were wide-ranging, her greatest achievement was how unabashedly authentic she remained no matter the circumstance she encountered.

Eileen was born in East Cleveland, Ohio on March 12, 1948, to Oscar Ross and Ruth Ross (Weisberg). Eileen was the oldest of three children. She married Michael Giannotto in 1983 and the couple raised two sons, Mark and Jeffrey, in Bethesda and Potomac, Maryland.

Eileen grew up in University Heights, Ohio before graduating from high school in Birmingham, Michigan. She then attended American University for one year at her loving father's request -- and hated it. But it's within this moment that Eileen's resolve and drive, characteristics that would come to define her, began to surface alongside her charming peculiarities.

Without her parents' knowledge, she was accepted to the Rhode Island School of Design and forged a path that was true to her own convictions. She graduated from RISD in 1972 with a degree in arts and architecture.

Eileen decorated her college apartment with Christmas ornaments because of their "glitz" and made an effort to know everything going on at RISD, and everyone who walked around the campus. She was unwilling to let preconceived notions stop her from engaging in a good conversation. Eileen also spent summers in Mexico and Italy as part of archaeological digs while living with host families. It's there that she learned to speak fluent Spanish, a skill she took particular pride in throughout her life.

Eileen then began a career as an architect for more than 20 years in the public and private sectors of the Washington, D.C. area.

Eileen worked at the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation, a quasi-government agency dedicated to redeveloping Pennsylvania Avenue in the wake of the civil rights riots in 1968. She was a key figure in the design of Freedom Plaza that sits just outside the White House.

Eileen later worked for the University of Maryland and helped design the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center on the university's College Park campus. She also taught graphic design at Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland.

Eileen was also an advocate for many social causes, beginning in the 1970s when she was a co-founder of the Washington Women in Architecture, an organization to help female architects find more opportunities within the profession. In addition, she was an outspoken friend of the gay community during a time in which such a thing was not mainstream in society.

In the 1990s, Eileen was a longtime member of the West Montgomery County Citizens Association and its efforts to preserve the environment in Montgomery County, Maryland. She also served on the Rustic Roads Advisory Committee appointed by the Montgomery County Executive to recommend measures to protect the rural roads of the community.

Eileen was proudly Jewish and an avid traveler, tennis player, and gardener, especially once she selflessly set aside her career to raise a family. She also loved music of all kinds, from Debussy to Depeche Mode, and Barbara Streisand to Luciano Pavarotti.

But it was Eileen's artistic flair -- and how little she cared about what others thought of her inimitable style -- that those who knew her best will remember most. The walls of her family home were a tribute to her eclectic taste, and her work was featured in her drawings, paintings, sculptures, and even on the family's dinner plates, which she designed.

Though her final years were altered by her Alzheimer's Disease diagnosis, Eileen found comfort in art. She rediscovered her love of drawing sketches, researching the most famous artists in history, and then creating portraits of each of them.

Eileen is preceded in death by her mother and father. She is survived by her husband, and sons Mark (Lindsey) and Jeffrey (Emma), one grandchild (Cole), her brother Alan and sister Miriam, as well as many nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you please consider a donation to IONA Senior Services in Washington, D.C. (iona.org)