Cecil Hervey Usher

Cecil Hervey Usher, aged 79, died at home on September 12, 2026 after an extended illness.

Cecil was born on October 9, 1946, the only child of Frances Daniel Smith Usher and Cecil Carlisle Usher in Richmond, Virginia.

Cecil married Elizabeth (Betty) Lee Mowbray on August 24, 1968, at Reveille Methodist Church in Richmond, Virginia. Their daughter, Bethany McKay Usher, was born on July 11, 1970. Cecil’s job gave the family the opportunity to explore cities in the Southeast, including stints living in Richmond, Virginia; Fairfax, Virginia; Asheville, North Carolina; and Birmingham, Alabama, before returning back to Northern Virginia. Cecil and Elizabeth settled in Vienna, Virginia for the last thirty years before recently moving to Ashburn, Virginia.

Cecil attended Richmond Public Schools, graduating from Thomas Jefferson High School in 1964. He was a 1969 graduate of Virginia Tech, enjoying his (extended) college years as a proud member of Alpha Kappa Epsilon fraternity. After graduating from Virginia Tech, he went on to have a long and distinguished career with the Internal Revenue Service. A Veteran, he served honorably in the United States Army Reserves from 1969 to 1975. In 1986, he earned his Masters of Public Administration from the University of Alabama, Birmingham. He retired from an executive position in IRS in 2001 after earning awards for his tax modernization project. That initiative was so complicated that his team worried that they would succeed “when pigs fly,” and his office was adorned with winged pig figurines once it was completed. He then spent several years as a project contractor before fully retiring in 2012.

Cecil and Elizabeth loved traveling together. They explored much of Europe, and returned regularly to favorite places in London and then to Aruba. Cecil was an avid learner, and would readily expound on any topic. He was renowned for his love of DIY electronics and other projects. He was a master of complicated stereo, video, and computer systems, many of which included wires, duct tape, and Velcro. He loved the Beatles and hated mowing the grass, relishing the day his daughter was old enough to take over that chore. Cecil was an advocate for women’s rights, joining his wife in supporting passage of the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s and telling his daughter that “she could do anything.” He enthusiastically supported his granddaughters from the sidelines of sports fields and hockey arenas, cheering them on even when he found the rules of the game perplexing. He was in the audience of every school performance, ceremony, and graduation, always reminding his “kids” how proud he was of them. Cecil adored his family and never failed to tell his wife, daughter, or granddaughters that he loved them. On a recent Thanksgiving, he looked around the table and said, “I don’t remember what I thought my life would be like - but this… this is better.”

In addition to his wife at home, Cecil is also survived by his daughter of Blacksburg, Virginia; two beloved granddaughters, Ciara McKay Weets of Berkeley, California and Braylee Erickson Weets of Arlington, Virginia; brother- and sister-in-law Perry Doniel (Pete) and Barbara (Bobbie) Mowbray of Marion, Virginia; and extended family across Virginia.

Services will be private.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Radford University in support of student research opportunities. Please send donations to the Radford University Foundation, Inc., P.O. Box 6893, Radford, VA 24142(https://rufound.org/). Please note that the gift is designated for student research in memory of Cecil Usher