EUNICE B. YACOUBIAN, 96; FORMER PHILADELPHIA NAVAL YARD SECRETARY
By Gayle Ronan Sims
Philadelphia Inquirer
Nov 6 2008
PA
Eunice B. Yacoubian, 96, former executive secretary to the commander of
the Philadelphia Navy Yard, died of heart failure Saturday at Harlee
Manor in Springfield, Delaware County, where she had lived for five
years. She was a longtime resident of Drexel Hill.
Miss Yacoubian fled her homeland during the persecution of Armenians
in 1915 and settled in West Philadelphia with her family. After
graduating from Overbrook High School, she was a cashier at Kresge’s
five-and-dime department store during the Depression.
When World War II broke out, Miss Yacoubian took a job at the
Philadelphia Navy Yard, where she worked for 34 years. As executive
personal secretary to the commander, she donned elegant ball gowns,
long gloves, fur stoles, and hats and escorted dignitaries to social
events.
"My aunt loved to dress up and go ballroom dancing," said her
great-niece Holly Lawson. "She had many suitors, but her mother did
not approve of any of them, so she never married."
After Miss Yacoubian retired in 1975, she volunteered her time to teach
English to Japanese students and cared for shut-ins in Drexel Hill.
Miss Yacoubian never forgot her Armenian roots. She kept copious notes
and memorabilia of her family’s history and filled her home with the
smell of traditional dishes such as beef wrapped in grape leaves,
pilaf, homemade yogurt, and cabbage and apples.
She also collected friends. "She had friendships that lasted more
than 90 years," her great niece said.
Miss Yacoubian was a skilled artist who painted in oils and traveled
the world to visit her family members who had scattered after the
Armenian persecution.
Besides her great-niece, Miss Yacoubian is survived by three nephews
and several great-nieces and great-nephews.
Friends may visit at 10 a.m. today at Drexel Hill United Methodist
Church, 600 Burmont Rd. A funeral will follow at 11. Burial will be in
Arlington Cemetery, Drexel Hill. Donations may be made to the church.