Plane crash victims were best friends

The two county residents killed in Saturday's plane crash in Carroll County were best friends who did everything together, including frequent flights aboard the small aircraft.

Retired Navy Lt. Cmdr. Robert Kociemba, 61, of Davidsonville, and Letty Williams, 66, of Edgewater, had been friends for years and were close, said Ashley Mitchell, a friend and neighbor of Williams.

"They did everything together," she said.

The crash happened at 7:30 a.m. near Sharrett Road in Keymar, in northwestern Carroll County. State police troopers found the two-seat aircraft crashed in a cornfield about a quarter mile from the Keymar Airpark.

Both Williams and Kociemba were pronounced dead at the scene by members of the Taneytown Volunteer Fire Department.

Police said the Golden Circle Air T-Bird II, a light sport aircraft, took off from the airpark just minutes before the crash, though officials said they don't know where the plane was headed. Federal aviation officials are conducting an investigation into the cause of the crash, police said.

Police said Kociemba flew from the air park two or three times a week and had rented hangar space there for about four years. He was an experienced pilot and had served as a naval aviator for 23 years.

"I think (the accident) was just a kind of fluke thing," said Brian Ruff of Edgewater, one of Williams' two sons.

Ruff said his mother lived in a row of townhouses in Edgewater where she "knew what everybody was doing." Kociemba lived just down the street, he said.

"She genuinely cared about what people were doing," he said. "She really had a good support group and happy little family here within the whole little row."

Flying as a hobby was relatively new for his mother, Ruff said, but she had been taking lessons through a program at Lee Airport.

"She was willing to try anything once, and she liked to do a various amount of things and she put 100 percent into everything she did," he said.

Ruff knew Kociemba as well, occasionally helping him with projects.

"Bob was an interesting person," he said. "I kind of looked out for them both. He was good to our children, he was interested in what people do."

Kociemba was an informational security specialist at Northrop Grumman after he retired from the Navy, and enjoyed sports such as sky diving and scuba diving - interests that he shared with Williams. He also was a longtime member of Holy Family Catholic Church, the Maryland Porsche Club and the Ultra Light Flying Club.

He leaves two children and one brother, but they could not be reached for comment.

Mitchell, Williams' neighbor, said her friend often flew with Kociemba, and they went up in the plane a lot.

"She felt perfectly comfortable with it," Mitchell said. "She trusted Bob."

She said she and Williams were more than just neighbors; they were friends, often hanging out on their backyard decks and chatting. They went to concerts and on boat rides together. Williams came to their Christmas Eve and Thanksgiving celebrations, and her son called her "Aunt Letty."

"She was very loving, very helpful," she said.

Williams was a program manager for Ward Solutions, and taught information security classes at Johns Hopkins University. A member of both Holy Family Catholic Church in Davidsonville and Christian Community Presbyterian Church in Bowie, she also was a volunteer for Habitat for Humanity.

When her sons were younger, she had been an elementary school teacher.

"She always talked about her love for teaching and kids," said her other son, Eric Ruff. "She really embraced life, age was not a factor for her. It wasn't going to slow her down at all."

She also leaves behind five grandchildren, and Mitchell added that she left her dog, a Maltese mix named Jackson.

The shock hasn't worn off for Williams' neighbor, who teared up while watching the news report on TV.

"I still kind of keep expecting her to come home," she said.

A celebration of Williams' life is planned from 6 to 8 p.m. today at Kalas Funeral Home, 2973 Solomons Island Road in Edgewater. Funeral services are at 11 a.m. tomorrow at Christian Community Presbyterian Church, 3120 Belair Drive in Bowie.

Kociemba will be remembered with a visitation from 6 to 8 p.m. tomorrow at Taylor Funeral Home, 147 Duke of Gloucester St.

A Mass of Christian burial will be offered at 11 a.m. Saturday at Holy Family Catholic Church, 826 W. Central Ave. in Davidsonville.