Melanie Morrison Chambers

Melanie Morrison Chambers, born April 19, 1944 in Honolulu, Hawaii during the height of World War II, is survived by her husband Robert Chambers, two children, nine grandchildren and two sisters. She died on January 30, 2023 from Progressive Supranuclear Palsy in the presence of her family at her home in Culpeper, VA. She will return to her beloved home of Maui in the ocean waters she loved to body surf as a kid. Melanie was a graduate of Kailua High School and Michigan State University where she experienced snow for the first time and created life long friendships with her suitemates. After graduation, she returned home to work for Pan Am and then AAA in Boston. She remained on the east coast until her passing but always carried the Hawaiian sunshine in her heart. In 1968, Melanie met her husband of 53 years and they were married in Sunapee, NH in 1969. She raised their two children in Victor, NY where they remained until 2002 when Melanie and Bob moved to Culpeper, VA to be close to their daughter, her husband and two grandchildren. Melanie was a strong-willed, fiercely independent woman who embodied a philosophy of realistic, pragmatism. She used her superwoman skills of planning and organizing to serve her community: as a civic member, an advocate for women and girls, a parishioner, volunteer for hospice and EMS, a travel agent and socially. Daily, her joys were reading, walking and gardening, flowers always and vegetables on and off throughout her life where she’d encounter an occasional garter snake - we, and the neighborhood, knew these encounters by her screams. Her greatest passions in life were traveling and spending time with her friends and family. During her life, she visited six of the seven continents marveling at the places she experienced and sharing the stories of the people she met. She always gave her time, energy and compassion to her family, community and friends; her purpose in life and what sustained her. This is her legacy. In lieu of flowers, her family is grateful for donations in Melanie’s name to the Serenity House hospice care, where she helped start it and then volunteered to care for residents and their families for three years before moving to Culpeper. At the end of her life, Melanie received so much light during the darkness of her illness from the CNAs, nurses and social workers at Heartland Hospice. Her family shares gratitude for their care, kindness and empathy. Her family and friends will celebrate her life on Saturday, March 18th at 11:00 am at the Reformation Lutheran Church in Culpeper.