Memorial Minute for George Robert “Bob” Elmendorf
| memorial_minute_bob_elmendorf_2026-02-08_final.pdf |
Old Chatham Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends
Memorial Minute for George Robert “Bob” Elmendorf
May 8, 1946 - September 25, 2025
George Robert “Bob” Elmendorf was a faithful member of Old Chatham Monthly Meeting,
and we hold in loving remembrance his warmth, humor, generous spirit, ministry, public
witness, and ability to listen deeply and give comfort and insight in unexpected ways.
Raised in Plattsburgh, NY with his twin brother Pete, Bob had a love of the Adirondacks
where he found renewal throughout his life at the family camp deep in the woods. Music,
including playing jazz piano, also fed his soul.
He began writing poetry while at Union College where he delved into Latin, Greek,
philosophy, and English. His passion for these topics continued via a Master’s Degree in
Liberal Arts and lifelong voracious reading. He taught Latin to home-schooled students for
more than a decade.
A published poet, Bob had a creative life that was a companion to his spiritual life — finding
words as one way to dwell in the Light, to honor truth and beauty, and to share that with
others. As a storyteller, he wove together artistry and faith with humor, poignancy, humility,
and integrity.
Upon moving to Columbia County, Bob was drawn to the Quaker way by a longing for
spiritual depth, authenticity, and community. He found a home in Old Chatham Monthly
Meeting where his thoughtful, gentle, yet passionate spirit could flourish.
Bob served faithfully in the life of the Meeting: attending worship, participating actively in
business, caring for the relational life of our community, and helping us reach outward. His
home and heart were open to hospitality, laughter, good conversation, and caring listening.
For many years, Bob was a dedicated member of the board of Powell House, the Quaker
retreat and conference center, where he assisted with everything from fundraising to
serving on the personnel committee.
Friends recall that he was “a force majeure” for outreach, peace, and justice and faithfully
served as clerk for that committee. He built outreach connections throughout the region
through press releases and putting up posters as he spread word about the Meeting
documentary film series, book sale fundraisers, and other special Meeting public events. For
a couple of years, he helped guide the Meeting’s outreach exhibit at the Columbia County
Fair to engage the public on the issue of solitary confinement, mass incarceration, and
legislative reform.
For years he took part in a weekly peace vigil in Chatham and was quoted in a local press
article saying, “I vigil because I am a Quaker and am against war or violence in any form for
any reason.”
Known as “Quaker Bob,” he often spoke with strangers (very friendly!) at cafés and stores,
and would typically bring up the topic of Quakerism. Then he gave them the Old Chatham
Meeting business card and encouraged them to try a “drive by” (i.e., you only have to come
once), resulting in bringing many people into our Meeting. That careful blending of witness,
public concern, faithful attention, and local engagement stands as a hallmark of his life
among us.
Bob’s life was marked by personal simplicity, creative openness, and steadfast devotion to
the testimonies we hold dear — of peace, of equality, of integrity, and of care for creation.
He embodied a Quaker way of being that persistently demonstrated what matters.
We give thanks for Bob’s life, for the Light that shone through him, and for the ways his
presence deepened our Meeting’s worship, tendered our common life, and extended to the
wider world.
May we carry forward the gifts he shared — his hospitality, his literary voice, his dedication
to justice, his faithfulness — into our lives and our Meeting's work, so that his witness
continues to live among us.
From one of Bob’s poems:
The bird flies away,
yet its song remains --
a quiet echo
in the trees of our hearts.
Approved by Old Chatham Monthly Meeting on February 8, 2026.
Memorial Minute for George Robert “Bob” Elmendorf
May 8, 1946 - September 25, 2025
George Robert “Bob” Elmendorf was a faithful member of Old Chatham Monthly Meeting,
and we hold in loving remembrance his warmth, humor, generous spirit, ministry, public
witness, and ability to listen deeply and give comfort and insight in unexpected ways.
Raised in Plattsburgh, NY with his twin brother Pete, Bob had a love of the Adirondacks
where he found renewal throughout his life at the family camp deep in the woods. Music,
including playing jazz piano, also fed his soul.
He began writing poetry while at Union College where he delved into Latin, Greek,
philosophy, and English. His passion for these topics continued via a Master’s Degree in
Liberal Arts and lifelong voracious reading. He taught Latin to home-schooled students for
more than a decade.
A published poet, Bob had a creative life that was a companion to his spiritual life — finding
words as one way to dwell in the Light, to honor truth and beauty, and to share that with
others. As a storyteller, he wove together artistry and faith with humor, poignancy, humility,
and integrity.
Upon moving to Columbia County, Bob was drawn to the Quaker way by a longing for
spiritual depth, authenticity, and community. He found a home in Old Chatham Monthly
Meeting where his thoughtful, gentle, yet passionate spirit could flourish.
Bob served faithfully in the life of the Meeting: attending worship, participating actively in
business, caring for the relational life of our community, and helping us reach outward. His
home and heart were open to hospitality, laughter, good conversation, and caring listening.
For many years, Bob was a dedicated member of the board of Powell House, the Quaker
retreat and conference center, where he assisted with everything from fundraising to
serving on the personnel committee.
Friends recall that he was “a force majeure” for outreach, peace, and justice and faithfully
served as clerk for that committee. He built outreach connections throughout the region
through press releases and putting up posters as he spread word about the Meeting
documentary film series, book sale fundraisers, and other special Meeting public events. For
a couple of years, he helped guide the Meeting’s outreach exhibit at the Columbia County
Fair to engage the public on the issue of solitary confinement, mass incarceration, and
legislative reform.
For years he took part in a weekly peace vigil in Chatham and was quoted in a local press
article saying, “I vigil because I am a Quaker and am against war or violence in any form for
any reason.”
Known as “Quaker Bob,” he often spoke with strangers (very friendly!) at cafés and stores,
and would typically bring up the topic of Quakerism. Then he gave them the Old Chatham
Meeting business card and encouraged them to try a “drive by” (i.e., you only have to come
once), resulting in bringing many people into our Meeting. That careful blending of witness,
public concern, faithful attention, and local engagement stands as a hallmark of his life
among us.
Bob’s life was marked by personal simplicity, creative openness, and steadfast devotion to
the testimonies we hold dear — of peace, of equality, of integrity, and of care for creation.
He embodied a Quaker way of being that persistently demonstrated what matters.
We give thanks for Bob’s life, for the Light that shone through him, and for the ways his
presence deepened our Meeting’s worship, tendered our common life, and extended to the
wider world.
May we carry forward the gifts he shared — his hospitality, his literary voice, his dedication
to justice, his faithfulness — into our lives and our Meeting's work, so that his witness
continues to live among us.
From one of Bob’s poems:
The bird flies away,
yet its song remains --
a quiet echo
in the trees of our hearts.
Approved by Old Chatham Monthly Meeting on February 8, 2026.
Memorial Minute for Peggy Pennell
| memorial_minute_for_peggy_pennell_approved_2026-02-08.pdf |
Memorial Minute for Peggy Pennell
February 2026
Peggy Polsky Pennell
October 11, 1936 - June 26, 2023
For over 20 years, Peggy Polsky Pennell was a cheerful, friendly, thoughtful, and pragmatic presence at Old Chatham Monthly Meeting. She gave generously of her spirit, time, and wealth and we sorely missed her when she moved to Kendal-on-Hudson for her final years of life.
Peggy was born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina, where she and her sister came out as the first Jewish debutantes in the city. Peggy did not enjoy one element of this and found herself more comfortable when she was sent north for a better education at George School, a Quaker boarding school in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
While a student at Radcliffe College she met Bill, a student at Harvard University, and they began their 61 years of marriage together 6 days after her graduation in 1958. While Bill studied law at the University of Pennsylvania, Peggy worked as an administrative assistant to a scientist retained by PepsiCo because of a lawsuit about botulism. The scientist proved nothing could live in a drink of Pepsi. Peggy’s advice to her children was: Don’t wait for an interesting career to happen to you; instead, search for something you find compelling and do that.
After Bill earned his law degree, Peggy and Bill moved to and settled in Brooklyn Heights, New York, where they raised Kate, born in 1963, and Tom, born in 1964. The children were still quite young when Peggy obtained a Master’s in Library Science and began a career as a librarian at Chemical Bank (later JP Morgan), which lasted almost 40 years. In the days before Google and artificial intelligence, she used her extraordinary research skills to answer all manner of questions that the bank’s analysts brought to her regarding various industries and markets. She later developed a database for the bank’s library collection. It turned out that she could be quite steely in negotiations with vendors to whose products the bank subscribed, drawing on her fluency regarding the sources, uses, and value. So the bank gave her responsibility for handling all of them.
Peggy and Bill were intent on broadening their children’s horizons and they traveled extensively, making summer trips to China, the Soviet Union, and many parts of Western Europe. Bill had a great hunger for such experiences, while Peggy was skilled at planning all the travel details.
For years, Peggy pushed Bill on the idea of owning a summer home in the country. After renting for a few years and enjoying the rich offerings of Tanglewood, the Mount, and other cultural venues in the Berkshire and Taconic Hills, in 1989 she persuaded him to seize the opportunity to build on Shaker Ridge in Canaan exactly the house they wanted and designed to require zero exterior maintenance, and it worked perfectly.
A few years after settling into the Canaan house, Peggy began attending the nearby Quaker Meeting in Old Chatham in her late 50s, having become more spiritual following the death of her mother. Her daughter Kate said that the Meeting was a surprising gift to Peggy - that engaging with the community was like slipping into a warm bath, which filled a need she hadn’t explicitly identified.
Peggy became a member on October 4, 1995, and served the Meeting in many roles over the years. As Treasurer, she was conscientious and reliable during the period when the Meeting’s financial activity ramped up from $10,000/year to $100,000s associated with fundraising for and building a meetinghouse. She put her tech skills to work when she moved the Meeting’s financial recordkeeping online and assisted with digitizing the Meeting records when she served as Recorder. As Recording Clerk, she was known for writing efficient minutes. In addition to these appointments, Peggy served as an inaugural member of our Finance Committee as well as on other committees related to property and other practical matters. She warmly welcomed groups to meet in her home overlooking beautiful Queechy Lake.
Peggy was a booklover, volunteering at the New Lebanon library, and later the library at Kendal-on-Hudson. She was so happy to announce after meeting for worship one Sunday the arrival of her first of two beloved grandchildren, for whom she carefully chose books.
With Peggy’s passion for books, she played a lead role in the Meeting’s most successful meetinghouse fundraisers - five Book & Art Sales that raised over $13,000 total. With Bill’s help, she obtained 501(c)(3) status for the Meeting, providing the Meeting with access to grant funds and other resources. These were only two of many ways that Peggy demonstrated dedication and generosity during the fundraising for and construction of the Meeting’s beautiful timber-framed meetinghouse, which was completed in 2013.
Peggy was not only a generous supporter of Old Chatham Meeting, but also of George School and other Friends' institutions. She was also attentive to individuals' personal struggles and needs and helped them quietly.
After moving to Kendal-on-Hudson in 2009, Peggy continued active engagement in Old Chatham Meeting until 2016 when she ceased having any official role as she cared for Bill, who died in 2019, and worshipped with Friends at Kendal. Occasionally, during the pandemic, she and her two cats joined Old Chatham Friends in worship via Zoom, much to our delight.
Peggy’s quiet, steady presence strengthened us all, and her spirit endures in our building and our community.
Approved by Old Chatham Monthly Meeting on February 8, 2026
Christine (Spee) Braun, clerk
February 2026
Peggy Polsky Pennell
October 11, 1936 - June 26, 2023
For over 20 years, Peggy Polsky Pennell was a cheerful, friendly, thoughtful, and pragmatic presence at Old Chatham Monthly Meeting. She gave generously of her spirit, time, and wealth and we sorely missed her when she moved to Kendal-on-Hudson for her final years of life.
Peggy was born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina, where she and her sister came out as the first Jewish debutantes in the city. Peggy did not enjoy one element of this and found herself more comfortable when she was sent north for a better education at George School, a Quaker boarding school in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
While a student at Radcliffe College she met Bill, a student at Harvard University, and they began their 61 years of marriage together 6 days after her graduation in 1958. While Bill studied law at the University of Pennsylvania, Peggy worked as an administrative assistant to a scientist retained by PepsiCo because of a lawsuit about botulism. The scientist proved nothing could live in a drink of Pepsi. Peggy’s advice to her children was: Don’t wait for an interesting career to happen to you; instead, search for something you find compelling and do that.
After Bill earned his law degree, Peggy and Bill moved to and settled in Brooklyn Heights, New York, where they raised Kate, born in 1963, and Tom, born in 1964. The children were still quite young when Peggy obtained a Master’s in Library Science and began a career as a librarian at Chemical Bank (later JP Morgan), which lasted almost 40 years. In the days before Google and artificial intelligence, she used her extraordinary research skills to answer all manner of questions that the bank’s analysts brought to her regarding various industries and markets. She later developed a database for the bank’s library collection. It turned out that she could be quite steely in negotiations with vendors to whose products the bank subscribed, drawing on her fluency regarding the sources, uses, and value. So the bank gave her responsibility for handling all of them.
Peggy and Bill were intent on broadening their children’s horizons and they traveled extensively, making summer trips to China, the Soviet Union, and many parts of Western Europe. Bill had a great hunger for such experiences, while Peggy was skilled at planning all the travel details.
For years, Peggy pushed Bill on the idea of owning a summer home in the country. After renting for a few years and enjoying the rich offerings of Tanglewood, the Mount, and other cultural venues in the Berkshire and Taconic Hills, in 1989 she persuaded him to seize the opportunity to build on Shaker Ridge in Canaan exactly the house they wanted and designed to require zero exterior maintenance, and it worked perfectly.
A few years after settling into the Canaan house, Peggy began attending the nearby Quaker Meeting in Old Chatham in her late 50s, having become more spiritual following the death of her mother. Her daughter Kate said that the Meeting was a surprising gift to Peggy - that engaging with the community was like slipping into a warm bath, which filled a need she hadn’t explicitly identified.
Peggy became a member on October 4, 1995, and served the Meeting in many roles over the years. As Treasurer, she was conscientious and reliable during the period when the Meeting’s financial activity ramped up from $10,000/year to $100,000s associated with fundraising for and building a meetinghouse. She put her tech skills to work when she moved the Meeting’s financial recordkeeping online and assisted with digitizing the Meeting records when she served as Recorder. As Recording Clerk, she was known for writing efficient minutes. In addition to these appointments, Peggy served as an inaugural member of our Finance Committee as well as on other committees related to property and other practical matters. She warmly welcomed groups to meet in her home overlooking beautiful Queechy Lake.
Peggy was a booklover, volunteering at the New Lebanon library, and later the library at Kendal-on-Hudson. She was so happy to announce after meeting for worship one Sunday the arrival of her first of two beloved grandchildren, for whom she carefully chose books.
With Peggy’s passion for books, she played a lead role in the Meeting’s most successful meetinghouse fundraisers - five Book & Art Sales that raised over $13,000 total. With Bill’s help, she obtained 501(c)(3) status for the Meeting, providing the Meeting with access to grant funds and other resources. These were only two of many ways that Peggy demonstrated dedication and generosity during the fundraising for and construction of the Meeting’s beautiful timber-framed meetinghouse, which was completed in 2013.
Peggy was not only a generous supporter of Old Chatham Meeting, but also of George School and other Friends' institutions. She was also attentive to individuals' personal struggles and needs and helped them quietly.
After moving to Kendal-on-Hudson in 2009, Peggy continued active engagement in Old Chatham Meeting until 2016 when she ceased having any official role as she cared for Bill, who died in 2019, and worshipped with Friends at Kendal. Occasionally, during the pandemic, she and her two cats joined Old Chatham Friends in worship via Zoom, much to our delight.
Peggy’s quiet, steady presence strengthened us all, and her spirit endures in our building and our community.
Approved by Old Chatham Monthly Meeting on February 8, 2026
Christine (Spee) Braun, clerk
Bev Thompson
| memorial_minute_for_bev_thompson.pdf |
Memorial Minute for Bev Thompson 8.11.1953 – 5.17.2024
Memorial Meeting under the Care of Old Chatham Quaker Meeting 6/8/2024
Bev Thompson became a member of Old Chatham Quaker Meeting in 1980 and over the years contributed to the life of the Meeting in many ways. Whenever we asked her to address a particular concern, we knew that her response would be creative and well-thought out. For example, after we settled into our new meetinghouse, as treasurer she came up with an ingenious plan to quickly pay off our mortgage. She also served as clerk of Ministry and Counsel.
In worship sharing sessions each Tuesday evening for many years, where Friends share thoughts about a particular word, Bev always spoke wisely and with deep consideration. During the last year of her life, when she had to stop attending, she was greatly missed by all who participated.
Born on August 11, 1953, in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, Bev grew up in Mountain Top, PA. She graduated from RPI where she met Bill Thompson. They married in 1976 and later formed a company that developed artificial intelligence systems. Their son, David, was born in 1981 and died in 2016.
Living in Nassau, NY, Bev appreciated the rural nature of her surroundings. She spoke often of the beauty of the valley where she and Bill lived, with its dirt road, creek, surrounding hills, big sky, and wildlife. Living close to nature, Bev felt a sacred reverence for life: she made friends with the chipmunks and squirrels. She also had a sense of adventure: for several years she rode a motorcycle on the back roads nearby.
While an active member of our Meeting, Bev was also a practitioner of Buddhism and member of a local sangha. She and Bill built a meditation hut to further her practice. Her dual path led her to treat all creatures with kindness.
It was this sense of open-heartedness that led Bev to help others. She was known for her generosity and commitment to members of our Meeting who were ill or facing death. During the last 10 years of her life, she took on an enormous responsibility for others by volunteering with the Hoags Corners ambulance crew. When she was on call and heard the alarm, she would drop everything and dash out the door to provide help in whatever emergency was occurring. Often the tasks included accompanying individuals to hospitals in Albany, NY, where she would spend hours providing support.
Although wiry and physically active when she was healthy, Bev experienced serious health conditions. In 2012, she underwent a liver transplant. Later, In the last two years of her life, she dealt with much pain and uncertainty involving pancreatic cancer. But between treatments, when able, she created a wonderful solution to keep herself healthy and strong: she bought an inflatable boat and took herself around to local ponds and lakes, thoroughly enjoying the feeling of independence and joy that came from rowing in the water.
Bev faced the end with eyes open, accepting the reality of her death and appreciating Bill’s loving care throughout her ordeal. When she died, Bill and family member Pam Russell were by her side. We miss her strong, steady, and kind presence among us.
Memorial Meeting under the Care of Old Chatham Quaker Meeting 6/8/2024
Bev Thompson became a member of Old Chatham Quaker Meeting in 1980 and over the years contributed to the life of the Meeting in many ways. Whenever we asked her to address a particular concern, we knew that her response would be creative and well-thought out. For example, after we settled into our new meetinghouse, as treasurer she came up with an ingenious plan to quickly pay off our mortgage. She also served as clerk of Ministry and Counsel.
In worship sharing sessions each Tuesday evening for many years, where Friends share thoughts about a particular word, Bev always spoke wisely and with deep consideration. During the last year of her life, when she had to stop attending, she was greatly missed by all who participated.
Born on August 11, 1953, in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, Bev grew up in Mountain Top, PA. She graduated from RPI where she met Bill Thompson. They married in 1976 and later formed a company that developed artificial intelligence systems. Their son, David, was born in 1981 and died in 2016.
Living in Nassau, NY, Bev appreciated the rural nature of her surroundings. She spoke often of the beauty of the valley where she and Bill lived, with its dirt road, creek, surrounding hills, big sky, and wildlife. Living close to nature, Bev felt a sacred reverence for life: she made friends with the chipmunks and squirrels. She also had a sense of adventure: for several years she rode a motorcycle on the back roads nearby.
While an active member of our Meeting, Bev was also a practitioner of Buddhism and member of a local sangha. She and Bill built a meditation hut to further her practice. Her dual path led her to treat all creatures with kindness.
It was this sense of open-heartedness that led Bev to help others. She was known for her generosity and commitment to members of our Meeting who were ill or facing death. During the last 10 years of her life, she took on an enormous responsibility for others by volunteering with the Hoags Corners ambulance crew. When she was on call and heard the alarm, she would drop everything and dash out the door to provide help in whatever emergency was occurring. Often the tasks included accompanying individuals to hospitals in Albany, NY, where she would spend hours providing support.
Although wiry and physically active when she was healthy, Bev experienced serious health conditions. In 2012, she underwent a liver transplant. Later, In the last two years of her life, she dealt with much pain and uncertainty involving pancreatic cancer. But between treatments, when able, she created a wonderful solution to keep herself healthy and strong: she bought an inflatable boat and took herself around to local ponds and lakes, thoroughly enjoying the feeling of independence and joy that came from rowing in the water.
Bev faced the end with eyes open, accepting the reality of her death and appreciating Bill’s loving care throughout her ordeal. When she died, Bill and family member Pam Russell were by her side. We miss her strong, steady, and kind presence among us.
Ann Rommel
Old Chatham Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends
Memorial Minute for Ann Rommel
11/13/1937 – 10/27/2020
Memorial Meeting under the Care of Old Chatham Meeting 11/15/2020
Ann, a long-time attender, transferred her Membership from Concord Meeting, PYM, in Concordville, Pennsylvania. She has been a member of our meeting since 2005. She served as a member of Outreach, Peace and Justice, Fundraising, and Welcoming committees, as well as our representative to the Chatham Interfaith Association, helping to arrange interdenominational Thanksgiving services. Around fifty years ago Ann and her husband Bob were co-directors of Powell House’s Youth Program.
Ann had a warm heart and smile and a gentle laugh, and often greeted attenders and newcomers, providing them with name tags and a brochure about our meeting. She was a stalwart at all our book and art sales and the jazz concerts for the meetinghouse and the food sales at intermissions, all fundraisers for our new Meetinghouse. She attended Friends General Conference Gathering. She was quick to lend money where it was needed without worrying about repayment.
Ann was instrumental in setting up our Meeting’s exhibit against Solitary Confinement at the Chatham Fair, for 2017 and 2018, handling the transportation of the cell replica, the arrangements for the fair booth and staffing many of the shifts. She helped advertise our film series and was always the first arrival to set up for the potluck that proceeded it, often bringing deviled eggs. She would shake out the tablecloths after we had struggled with the unwieldy tables, make the coffee and set the tables. As a member of the Welcoming committee, she always brought the bagels, and took the donation of canned goods to the Chatham Area Silent Food pantry.
Ann loved music and frequently attended concerts in the area. She was in the Ghent Band and enjoyed playing the piano. She was an avid reader and loved to lend and borrow books. Once she saw Forsythia bloom twice when winter retreated, and she kept a colorful garden. She often exclaimed how beautiful the pasture was behind our meetinghouse. Ann was always available to talk by phone. As the editor and publisher of Homebuyer’s Guide for 23 years, she was well known in Chatham. Once when she fell in her yard and a neighbor helped her up, Ann said the entire town knew about it within 15 minutes. Ann died from a heart attack in the arms of her son Gage. An oak tree will rustle this Spring planted at the Meetinghouse in remembrance of her.
Memorial Minute for Ann Rommel
11/13/1937 – 10/27/2020
Memorial Meeting under the Care of Old Chatham Meeting 11/15/2020
Ann, a long-time attender, transferred her Membership from Concord Meeting, PYM, in Concordville, Pennsylvania. She has been a member of our meeting since 2005. She served as a member of Outreach, Peace and Justice, Fundraising, and Welcoming committees, as well as our representative to the Chatham Interfaith Association, helping to arrange interdenominational Thanksgiving services. Around fifty years ago Ann and her husband Bob were co-directors of Powell House’s Youth Program.
Ann had a warm heart and smile and a gentle laugh, and often greeted attenders and newcomers, providing them with name tags and a brochure about our meeting. She was a stalwart at all our book and art sales and the jazz concerts for the meetinghouse and the food sales at intermissions, all fundraisers for our new Meetinghouse. She attended Friends General Conference Gathering. She was quick to lend money where it was needed without worrying about repayment.
Ann was instrumental in setting up our Meeting’s exhibit against Solitary Confinement at the Chatham Fair, for 2017 and 2018, handling the transportation of the cell replica, the arrangements for the fair booth and staffing many of the shifts. She helped advertise our film series and was always the first arrival to set up for the potluck that proceeded it, often bringing deviled eggs. She would shake out the tablecloths after we had struggled with the unwieldy tables, make the coffee and set the tables. As a member of the Welcoming committee, she always brought the bagels, and took the donation of canned goods to the Chatham Area Silent Food pantry.
Ann loved music and frequently attended concerts in the area. She was in the Ghent Band and enjoyed playing the piano. She was an avid reader and loved to lend and borrow books. Once she saw Forsythia bloom twice when winter retreated, and she kept a colorful garden. She often exclaimed how beautiful the pasture was behind our meetinghouse. Ann was always available to talk by phone. As the editor and publisher of Homebuyer’s Guide for 23 years, she was well known in Chatham. Once when she fell in her yard and a neighbor helped her up, Ann said the entire town knew about it within 15 minutes. Ann died from a heart attack in the arms of her son Gage. An oak tree will rustle this Spring planted at the Meetinghouse in remembrance of her.
M. Elisabeth Grace
Old Chatham Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends
Memorial Minute for M. Elisabeth Grace
4/28/1934 – 2/7/2018
Memorial Meeting under the care of Old Chatham Meeting 4/14/18
It is a challenge to choose words in giving tribute to one whose legacy includes many examples of an incomparable writing skill. We in Old Chatham Meeting can only offer gratitude for the many years in which Elisabeth Grace was present among us, sharing her wit and her words in a manner that entertained, educated, challenged us as she quietly modeled an exemplary life.
A Friend since 1958, Elisabeth contributed to the life of Old Chatham Meeting in many ways after settling in Columbia County in 1975. Serving on a number of committees over the years as well as acting as clerk of the Meeting, she contributed to the spiritual life of the meeting through vocal ministry and participation in worship sharing. As a member of Ministry and Counsel, Elisabeth utilized her professional listening skills in supporting others on their spiritual journeys. We learned about the disruption and displacement of war when she spoke of her growing-up years in England during the 1940’s. On work days here at the meetinghouse, Elisabeth tried to convince us that the only real difference between a flower and a weed is location! In her service on the Bob Bacon Memorial Fund, Elisabeth brought her concern for families and especially for LGBTQ folk who were experiencing discrimination and turmoil. And, as president of the board of Friends Burial Ground at Rayville, she was first to arrive for work days, lending her energy and insight to our many restoration and improvement efforts.
It is hard to recall Elisabeth’s life in Columbia County without also remembering that of Kate Dunham, her life partner of 33 years until Kate’s death in 2006. For many years, they co-authored “The Birders’ Corner,” a weekly column in the Chatham Courier. They worked together in the Columbia County Land Conservancy and in the Alan Devoe Bird Club, where they built and maintained trails, led bird walks, and contributed to the newsletter.
Many Old Chatham Friends and neighbors were present for Elisabeth’s 65th birthday celebration at Powell House, and will always remember her delighted amazement when a Scottish bagpiper began playing outside the ballroom windows – a surprise arranged by Kate and a telling example of their devotion to each other. Their compassion for and commitment to protecting and feeding wildlife is legendary, as exemplified by the many bird feeders around their home and also in “Ode to Badger,” a tender tribute to a woodchuck who dined each day in the garden.
In recent years, Elisabeth generously shared her time and her trained therapy dog, Cole, in visits to schools, hospitals, and nursing homes. A member of writing groups, she sometimes read her work on public radio, and she was committed to helping other elders to continue living independently.
Elisabeth’s last gift to Old Chatham Meeting was the opportunity to be present with her in her final weeks as she journeyed through the agony of pancreatic cancer. Those among us who offered a ministry of presence to Elisabeth are blessed by that experience, and will join with others for the interment of ashes at Rayville one spring day when the bluebirds have returned to their box and the flowering shadblow tree which Elisabeth planted is in full bloom over the bench inscribed ‘Kate Dunham and Elisabeth Grace.’
Memorial Minute for M. Elisabeth Grace
4/28/1934 – 2/7/2018
Memorial Meeting under the care of Old Chatham Meeting 4/14/18
It is a challenge to choose words in giving tribute to one whose legacy includes many examples of an incomparable writing skill. We in Old Chatham Meeting can only offer gratitude for the many years in which Elisabeth Grace was present among us, sharing her wit and her words in a manner that entertained, educated, challenged us as she quietly modeled an exemplary life.
A Friend since 1958, Elisabeth contributed to the life of Old Chatham Meeting in many ways after settling in Columbia County in 1975. Serving on a number of committees over the years as well as acting as clerk of the Meeting, she contributed to the spiritual life of the meeting through vocal ministry and participation in worship sharing. As a member of Ministry and Counsel, Elisabeth utilized her professional listening skills in supporting others on their spiritual journeys. We learned about the disruption and displacement of war when she spoke of her growing-up years in England during the 1940’s. On work days here at the meetinghouse, Elisabeth tried to convince us that the only real difference between a flower and a weed is location! In her service on the Bob Bacon Memorial Fund, Elisabeth brought her concern for families and especially for LGBTQ folk who were experiencing discrimination and turmoil. And, as president of the board of Friends Burial Ground at Rayville, she was first to arrive for work days, lending her energy and insight to our many restoration and improvement efforts.
It is hard to recall Elisabeth’s life in Columbia County without also remembering that of Kate Dunham, her life partner of 33 years until Kate’s death in 2006. For many years, they co-authored “The Birders’ Corner,” a weekly column in the Chatham Courier. They worked together in the Columbia County Land Conservancy and in the Alan Devoe Bird Club, where they built and maintained trails, led bird walks, and contributed to the newsletter.
Many Old Chatham Friends and neighbors were present for Elisabeth’s 65th birthday celebration at Powell House, and will always remember her delighted amazement when a Scottish bagpiper began playing outside the ballroom windows – a surprise arranged by Kate and a telling example of their devotion to each other. Their compassion for and commitment to protecting and feeding wildlife is legendary, as exemplified by the many bird feeders around their home and also in “Ode to Badger,” a tender tribute to a woodchuck who dined each day in the garden.
In recent years, Elisabeth generously shared her time and her trained therapy dog, Cole, in visits to schools, hospitals, and nursing homes. A member of writing groups, she sometimes read her work on public radio, and she was committed to helping other elders to continue living independently.
Elisabeth’s last gift to Old Chatham Meeting was the opportunity to be present with her in her final weeks as she journeyed through the agony of pancreatic cancer. Those among us who offered a ministry of presence to Elisabeth are blessed by that experience, and will join with others for the interment of ashes at Rayville one spring day when the bluebirds have returned to their box and the flowering shadblow tree which Elisabeth planted is in full bloom over the bench inscribed ‘Kate Dunham and Elisabeth Grace.’
Susan Landesman Roberts
Susan Landesman Roberts Memorial Minute
Susan Landesman Roberts was born July 1, 1941 and died on May 30, 2018. She was a lifelong Quaker and long time member of Old Chatham Monthly Meeting. Susan supported Old Chatham Meeting financially and through her involvement in Outreach Peace and Justice activities. Susan was a regular participant in the social justice movie nights, volunteered to help at events sponsored by the Chatham Peace Initiative and was interested in the issues around fairness in the criminal justice system. She embodied Friends’ beliefs in fully developing and using one’s gifts in the world. She led a life filled with music, family, animals, exploration of the natural world, social work, peace work and public administration. She had a gifted intellect and an infinite capacity for hard labor.
From a one room schoolhouse in Greenhaven, NY, Susan went on to receive her undergraduate degree in music. Her love of opera led her to learn French, German and Italian to better appreciate it. A lifelong musician, she dabbled at the cello and banjo, but her first passion was piano, and she brought her baby grand with her to the farmhouse she shared with her second husband, Neil.
In the 1960’s Susan moved to Manhattan as a single mother with her son Peter. There she found employment with the city Department of Social Services and received a masters in Social Work and one in Public Administration. She moved to the Albany area to work for the NY State Department of Mental Hygiene and at the same time earned a doctorate in Public Administration from New York University. She became head of the Office of Professions Division of Professional Licensing Services.
In addition to her work with the state, Susan was a farmer. She raised chickens and goats, and pictures attest to her sheer joy at being used as a kid jungle gym. Susan didn’t tell jokes but she put people at ease and made them smile. For a quarter of a century, she put this gift to good use by inviting the local preschool class to a day at the farm. Generations of families came out to collect eggs, watch goats being milked, ride on Captain the country gentleman’s horse and drive the antique tractor.
Susan found spiritual renewal in the natural world. She loved kayaking, canoeing, hiking and snowshoeing. Weekends would often find her in the Adirondacks or the Catskills paddling or climbing the high peaks. She is on the Catskill 3500 Club member list and the ADK46ers roster.
Family was an integral part of Susan. She delighted in her son, Peter Eisler, an award winning journalist with Reuters, his wife, Mimi and their two sons, Henry and Gray (Graham). She chose her second husband Neil Roberts because as she put it, “you make me laugh” and spent four decades immersed with him in the essentials of life well-lived: presence, connection, joy and love.
Susan Landesman Roberts was born July 1, 1941 and died on May 30, 2018. She was a lifelong Quaker and long time member of Old Chatham Monthly Meeting. Susan supported Old Chatham Meeting financially and through her involvement in Outreach Peace and Justice activities. Susan was a regular participant in the social justice movie nights, volunteered to help at events sponsored by the Chatham Peace Initiative and was interested in the issues around fairness in the criminal justice system. She embodied Friends’ beliefs in fully developing and using one’s gifts in the world. She led a life filled with music, family, animals, exploration of the natural world, social work, peace work and public administration. She had a gifted intellect and an infinite capacity for hard labor.
From a one room schoolhouse in Greenhaven, NY, Susan went on to receive her undergraduate degree in music. Her love of opera led her to learn French, German and Italian to better appreciate it. A lifelong musician, she dabbled at the cello and banjo, but her first passion was piano, and she brought her baby grand with her to the farmhouse she shared with her second husband, Neil.
In the 1960’s Susan moved to Manhattan as a single mother with her son Peter. There she found employment with the city Department of Social Services and received a masters in Social Work and one in Public Administration. She moved to the Albany area to work for the NY State Department of Mental Hygiene and at the same time earned a doctorate in Public Administration from New York University. She became head of the Office of Professions Division of Professional Licensing Services.
In addition to her work with the state, Susan was a farmer. She raised chickens and goats, and pictures attest to her sheer joy at being used as a kid jungle gym. Susan didn’t tell jokes but she put people at ease and made them smile. For a quarter of a century, she put this gift to good use by inviting the local preschool class to a day at the farm. Generations of families came out to collect eggs, watch goats being milked, ride on Captain the country gentleman’s horse and drive the antique tractor.
Susan found spiritual renewal in the natural world. She loved kayaking, canoeing, hiking and snowshoeing. Weekends would often find her in the Adirondacks or the Catskills paddling or climbing the high peaks. She is on the Catskill 3500 Club member list and the ADK46ers roster.
Family was an integral part of Susan. She delighted in her son, Peter Eisler, an award winning journalist with Reuters, his wife, Mimi and their two sons, Henry and Gray (Graham). She chose her second husband Neil Roberts because as she put it, “you make me laugh” and spent four decades immersed with him in the essentials of life well-lived: presence, connection, joy and love.
Viola Purvis
| viola_purvis_memorial_minute.pdf |
Viola Purvis (1911-2003) was a member of Old Chatham Meeting in her later years, after retiring from service as general secretary and field secretary to New York Yearly Meeting. She was known as a careful listener and a powerful speaker in meeting for worship. Her full memorial minute is on file with our Meeting archives.
At the January 1, 2023 meeting for business, Lyle Jenks spoke of our late member Viola Purvis and her work to preserve the legacy of pioneer women's rights advocate Emily Howland, newly inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. Here are his remarks, as prepared for delivery last fall at Opendore Museum in Sherwood, NY, the Quaker hamlet near Poplar Ridge Meeting which was Emily Howland's home.
Viola Purvis Manuscript on Emily Howland – Remarks for 17 Ninth Month, 2022 at Opendore Museum.
Greetings, Friends -
What pleasure to be here at the Howland Stone Store Museum this afternoon, participating in the “All Are
Welcome Here” program and the exciting run-up to Emily Howland’s induction into the National
Women’s Hall of Fame (September 24, 2022) in Seneca Falls.
Some years ago I became the steward of an undated, unpublished manuscript entitled “Bright Shining as
the Sun” – a monograph on the life and work of Emily Howland, known and remembered as a pioneer
educator, suffragist, human rights advocate and peace visionary.
This monograph was researched and authored by the now late Viola E. Purvis, a member of Old Chatham Quaker Meeting
in her later years, who served as field secretary for New York Yearly Meeting of Friends,
visiting Quakers throughout New York and beyond. Among others, members of the Otis family here in Sherwood
supported Viola’s careful research onEmily Howland’s most remarkable life.
As I knew and then grew to respect and love Viola in her later years, I saw it to be totally congruent that
she was drawn to the life and witness of Emily Howland. An advocate for peace and justice herself – an
example would be traveling with an ecumenical good-will tour to Cuba at a time when such gestures were
considered suspect by most Americans - Viola Purvis examined Emily Howland’s life grounded in
Quaker principles of respect for the dignity of all – regardless of race, gender, class or social standing.
Viola came to see Emily as a role model for others – in Emily’s words, using an old Quaker admonition to
“let our lives speak” – speak to and witness for the values we hold and the world we seek.
Only when visiting the Howland Stone Store Museum with a tour of Friends Historical Association led by
Judy Wellman and others of us in the 1816 Farmington Quaker Meetinghouse project did I come to
understand that this manuscript belongs here in the archives and research library at Opendore.
I offer gratitude to Kathryn Bacon, then of Old Chatham Friends Meeting for safeguarding Viola’s manuscript,
and to Ruth Hyde Paine, then of St. Petersburg Friends Meeting, for painstakingly re-typing the final draft.
I’m privileged to now transfer stewardship of this document to the curators at Opendore so that visitors and
researchers may benefit from Viola’s work, and, perhaps, be inspired by Emily Howland to “let our lives
speak” – even ‘bright shining as the sun.”
Lyle R. Jenks
At the January 1, 2023 meeting for business, Lyle Jenks spoke of our late member Viola Purvis and her work to preserve the legacy of pioneer women's rights advocate Emily Howland, newly inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. Here are his remarks, as prepared for delivery last fall at Opendore Museum in Sherwood, NY, the Quaker hamlet near Poplar Ridge Meeting which was Emily Howland's home.
Viola Purvis Manuscript on Emily Howland – Remarks for 17 Ninth Month, 2022 at Opendore Museum.
Greetings, Friends -
What pleasure to be here at the Howland Stone Store Museum this afternoon, participating in the “All Are
Welcome Here” program and the exciting run-up to Emily Howland’s induction into the National
Women’s Hall of Fame (September 24, 2022) in Seneca Falls.
Some years ago I became the steward of an undated, unpublished manuscript entitled “Bright Shining as
the Sun” – a monograph on the life and work of Emily Howland, known and remembered as a pioneer
educator, suffragist, human rights advocate and peace visionary.
This monograph was researched and authored by the now late Viola E. Purvis, a member of Old Chatham Quaker Meeting
in her later years, who served as field secretary for New York Yearly Meeting of Friends,
visiting Quakers throughout New York and beyond. Among others, members of the Otis family here in Sherwood
supported Viola’s careful research onEmily Howland’s most remarkable life.
As I knew and then grew to respect and love Viola in her later years, I saw it to be totally congruent that
she was drawn to the life and witness of Emily Howland. An advocate for peace and justice herself – an
example would be traveling with an ecumenical good-will tour to Cuba at a time when such gestures were
considered suspect by most Americans - Viola Purvis examined Emily Howland’s life grounded in
Quaker principles of respect for the dignity of all – regardless of race, gender, class or social standing.
Viola came to see Emily as a role model for others – in Emily’s words, using an old Quaker admonition to
“let our lives speak” – speak to and witness for the values we hold and the world we seek.
Only when visiting the Howland Stone Store Museum with a tour of Friends Historical Association led by
Judy Wellman and others of us in the 1816 Farmington Quaker Meetinghouse project did I come to
understand that this manuscript belongs here in the archives and research library at Opendore.
I offer gratitude to Kathryn Bacon, then of Old Chatham Friends Meeting for safeguarding Viola’s manuscript,
and to Ruth Hyde Paine, then of St. Petersburg Friends Meeting, for painstakingly re-typing the final draft.
I’m privileged to now transfer stewardship of this document to the curators at Opendore so that visitors and
researchers may benefit from Viola’s work, and, perhaps, be inspired by Emily Howland to “let our lives
speak” – even ‘bright shining as the sun.”
Lyle R. Jenks
Margaret Mace Kingman
