Deborah
Butterfield Galbraith, of Shelburne, Vt., died in her residence at
Wake Robin on August 16, 2025. Born in the Germantown section of
Philadelphia, Penn., in 1939 to Right Reverend Harvey Dean
Butterfield and Carolyn Whitney Butterfield, she moved with her
parents and older brother, Whit, back to her parents’ home state of
Vermont when her father was appointed to the Episcopal parish in
Rutland. She finished high school in Burlington, Vt., where her
father was made dean of Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church (now
Cathedral) and then elected as the sixth bishop of the Episcopal
Diocese of Vermont, while her mother served the community of
Burlington through organizations such as the Lund Home.
Deborah
met her beloved husband, Peter Dugald Galbraith, when they were
students at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, N.Y. They
were married at Rock Point in Vermont in 1961. After a stint living
in Queens, N.Y., they returned to Burlington, Vt., before spending
four years in Philadelphia, Penn. Through the course of their
marriage, they made homes for their family in Vermont, Pennsylvania,
western New York and Connecticut, with their compass always pointing
to a return to their cherished Vermont.
Debby
Galbraith (Nana) is survived by her husband and their three children,
Gretchen, Michael and Kevin, and by her treasured children-in-law and
grandchildren. Gretchen and her spouse Peter Anderson’s children
include Alexander Romero Galbraith, Chris Anderson, and Danni
Anderson and their husband, Aaron. Michael and his wife Marthe
Galbraith’s children are Marlowe and Willoughby Galbraith. Kevin
and his wife Elizabeth Bracken’s children are Brooks, Sasha and
Vivienne Galbraith. Deborah is also survived by her dear brother,
Whitney Butterfield; his wife, Joyce; their children, Chris, Steve,
David and Andrea; their spouses and children; and by cousins in the
Butterfield and Whitney branches of her family.
In
the 1970s, Deborah decided to follow her dream of becoming a nurse,
earning her degree at the University of Vermont and holding positions
at Mercy Hospital in Buffalo, N.Y., and Hartford Hospital in
Connecticut. While she was reluctantly pulled into
administrative roles, her calling was for working directly with
patients; she especially loved working with mothers and their
newborns. Deborah and Peter returned to Vermont in the early 1990s,
when Peter took up the role of State Epidemiologist. Deborah served
as nurse for the Lund residential program before retiring. In
retirement, she worked extensively with successive waves of refugees
to Chittenden County, beginning with the young Sudanese men who
arrived in the early 2000s, and made a deep impact on so many
Vermonters. Her retirement years also included deep engagement with
the Cathedral Church of Saint Paul community and choir; the
125-year-old Fortnightly book club to which her mother and aunt had
belonged; knitting colorful hats and socks; adventures in camping,
hiking and kayaking with her extended family; and entertaining and
traveling to see her grandchildren.
Debby’s
family is deeply grateful for the care, professionalism and empathy
of the staff at Wake Robin and Bayada Hospice team. In honor of her
loving, empathetic and more than slightly impish spirit, the family
encourages you to plan an adventure with loved ones (preferably
including good food) and love each other fiercely. Please consider
donations to an organization that supports refugees or maternal and
child health or to Rock Point Commons in lieu of flowers.
A
memorial service will be held at the Cathedral Church of Saint Paul,
2 Cherry Street, Burlington, Vt., on October 11, 2025, at 2 p.m. For
those in attendance, we encourage you to wear clothing in the bright
blues and greens and purples that Debby loved.
Arrangements
are in the care of Ready Funeral and Cremation Services. To send
online condolences, please visit cremationsocietycc.com.