Death of Mom, Sons in Plane Crash Sends Shockwaves Through Community

By Karen Wall

»(Marie Wagner Gemmell and sons Cole and Devin, from husband Ken Gemmell’s Facebook page.)

The photos stare back from the screen, dozens of moments captured forever by a lens. Pictures from once-in-a-lifetime trips, snapshots of lazy days and special occasions, glimpses of children and pets and parties and memories, old and new, of a family where love reigns.

Those memories are all that remain now, after a tragedy that defies words: a mother and her two young sons killed, just two weeks before Christmas, when a private plane crashed in their quiet Gaithersburg neighborhood on Monday morning.

Marie Gemmell, 36, a 1997 graduate of Brick Memorial High School in New Jersey, and her sons, Cole, 3, and Devin, 6-1/2 weeks, were killed when a wing from the twin-engine plane hit their home and burst into flames. Her husband, Kenneth, 36, was at work, and their 5-year-old daughter, Arabelle, was at school at the time of the crash.

The fire destroyed the family’s home, as well, leaving the life Kenneth and Arabelle had known in tatters just as the family was preparing for Christmas.

Fundraiser for Family’s Expenses

The outpouring of grief has spurred action: Friends in Brick put together a gift-card fundraiser to help Ken and Arabelle with immediate needs. In Gaithersburg, the waitress at their favorite brewpub -- Dogfish Head Alehouse in Gaithersburg -- started a gofundme.com page that had raised nearly $95,000 as of 9 a.m. Tuesday.

“Marie was loved by many,” one poster on the gofundme page wrote in a note addressed to Ken and Arabelle. “I hope that you both feel that love and support in the days and years ahead.”

To donate to the gofundme effort, visit the Gemmell family page here.

Mom, Two Children Die When Plane Hits Their House

UPDATE: 6 Dead After Plane Crashes into Gaithersburg House: Reports

Family’s Hometown Reels

In Marie Gemmell’s hometown of Brick, N.J., shock rippled through the community Monday evening as word of the tragedy spread.

On the Brick Township “In Memory Of” Memorial Page on Facebook, friends and former classmates used words such as “heartbreaking” and “terrible” as they responded to a post about the tragedy, reports Brick, NJ Patch.

“I just can’t wrap my head around what her family is going through,” one woman wrote. “She was truly such a caring person. Her and her poor boys. Such a terrible loss.”

Gemmell -- who was Marie Wagner when she graduated from Brick Memorial in 1997 -- was a devoted stay-at-home mother who loved soccer and the Denver Broncos, and shared a passion for those and for quality microbrewed beer with her husband, Ken. The couple had celebrated their 10th anniversary on Sept. 25, with Marie changing her profile and cover photos on Facebook to pictures from their 2004 wedding to mark the occasion.

From information gathered from public Facebook postings by Marie and Ken, the couple met when they were both students at Rowan University, where she was a member of Phi Sigma Sigma sorority. Ken, who grew up in Hillsborough, N.J., earned a degree in electrical engineering, and sometime after graduation the couple moved to the Washington, D.C., area, where Ken began working for tech companies, according to a September 2014 article in the Washington Post.

Photos on Facebook show the couple with their children and enjoying time with family, including Marie’s mother, Kathleen, and aunt, who live nearby in Maryland. And they show the couple’s other passions: a trip to Germany for the 2006 World Cup in men’s soccer; trips to Denver and Baltimore for Broncos’ games, including the AFC Championship game last January when the Broncos beat the New England Patriots to earn a trip to the Super Bowl. A VIP visit and photos with members of the Broncos after a Denver-Baltimore game in October 2013. And trips to the Great American Beer Festival on a few occasions. They also were Major League Soccer fans, and attended D.C. United games with Arabelle and Cole.

Cole, who turned 3 on Oct. 22, had recently begun playing soccer. Devin was born Oct. 23.

Friends Remember Mom

Marie Gemmell was the kind of person who touched everyone she met, several Facebook posters said. Her Facebook posts revealed a woman who was witty and smart and found the humor in life often, and who loved life.

Among her friends, several changed their Facebook profile photos to pictures of happy moments spent with a woman who was described repeatedly as one of the nicest you’d ever meet.

“I met Marie when she worked at Camp Beadleston,” wrote one woman, referring to a summer camp in Brick for children with special needs. “Her mom worked there and Marie started out as a volunteer in my group, eventually becoming an aide. She was wonderful with the kids and just the sweetest person.”

Though she had lived in Maryland for several years, New Jersey wasn’t far from Marie’s heart; when Superstorm Sandy hit, she was actively involved with fundraising to help those back in her hometown.