Norwich, VT – The world lost a bright light of kindness and joy in the early hours of October 14, when Christine Bothe passed away at home with her daughters by her side. Christine Marie Noe?lle Que?ru arrived as a gift on Christmas Day, 1951, the youngest of four children, in Versailles, France. The family moved to Melun, just south of Paris, and spent summers in Brittany and traveling around France.
She met the love of her life, Edgar Bothe, while working as an au pair in Atlanta. He was a baker and recognized her immediately for the treasure she was, and they married in 1980. Their two daughters, Madeleine and Charlotte, were born in Atlanta before they moved to Princeton, NJ. In 1989, they moved again to a new home on Hawk Pine Road in Norwich, VT, where they raised the girls and became beloved members of the community.
Christine began working at Dartmouth College as an administrative assistant. While working and raising a family, she received her BA from the College of Lifelong Learning, and was promoted to Assistant Director of Sponsored Projects. Her career at Dartmouth spanned more than 25 years, and her retirement in 2016 was acknowledged by a beautiful surprise celebration at the AVA gallery. The end of a fulfilling and accomplished career gave her more time to be a beloved grandmother and to care for Edgar, who passed away in December of 2017.
Christine was always enormously generous with her time and her love, eager to help others any way she could. Her ever-present smile never let on the decades of cancer diagnoses and treatments, which she dealt with as an inconvenient hobby with a unique combination of grace and dignity. She never let it slow her down or get in the way of living a wonderful life. Over the years many doctors supported her, notably Dr. Peter Kaufman who remained a trusted provider for her throughout her illness.
She loved the connections and friendships she formed over the years in Norwich. She joined local investment and French clubs and was active in the Norwich Women’s Club, the Historical Society and the Norwich Public Library. A particular fondness was for the Hopkins Center, where she frequently attended films and performances and served as a volunteer usher.
Christine will be remembered as the sweet, kind French woman with the beautiful, melodic accent. She could laugh with others at their good-natured ribbing about her creative use of English idioms. A gifted cook of classic French dishes and lover of cheese and chocolate, her biggest source of joy was certainly her family. Daily walks around the Hawk Pine circle were marked by friendly waves and enthusiastic greetings to young and old alike, and she will be deeply missed by all around her, whose lives she brightened and enriched beyond belief.
She was predeceased by Edgar, her parents, her grandson Oliver, and two cherished dogs, Teddy and Max. Christine leaves behind her two daughters and their spouses, Madeleine (Edward Felstead) and Charlotte (Peter Rutledge), her brothers Jean-Louis and Philippe, sister Michele, and grandchildren Sophie, Silas, and Audrey, as well as generations of nieces and nephews. Her annual trips to France to visit all her relatives were another great source of joy, and her last one was in May of this year. While she maintained this connection and her French citizenship her whole life, she also became a proud, active American citizen in 2002.
The family is working on planning a celebration of life for Christine in 2027. Although donations to our local organizations are much in need and greatly appreciated, the best way to honor her memory is to be kind not just to those you know and love but to strangers you’ve never met before. That is the lasting legacy of Christine.
An on-line guestbook can be found at rand-wilson.com.
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