Lynne Marx Chabot

June 7, 1948---June 16, 2022

Lynne Marx Chabot was born on June 7th, 1948, the daughter of Audrey and Bill. Lynne was kind and generous, and wanted good things for everyone.

By her own account, she had a happy childhood, and many fond memories of the people she knew growing up in Southern California. She left home in 1966 to study economics at Berkeley, where she made several life-long friends in her sorority. After completing her degree she volunteered for the Carter presidential campaign, a cause she was proud to be involved with since it was a reflection of her own values: fairness, kindness, and compassion. She was honored when she was selected to work on the transition team at the end of the 1970s, work that took her all the way to the White House in Washington, DC.

Afterward, she worked at the Department of Energy and spent the rest of her life in Virginia--first in Alexandria, and later in Nelson County. In retirement, she was a substitute teacher and volunteered at a local animal shelter. She planted several trees at every home she ever had, and the world is better off for having had her in it.

Lynne married her husband, Phil, in 1985 and their marriage lasted until his death in 2010. She loved her family, and she devoted much of her life to raising her children--Alex, Liza, and Patrick--supporting them as best she could and making sure they could follow their dreams. Included in her family were her pets, whom she doted on; among them many good dogs, some cats, and even a tortoise in her youth.

Lynne also loved her friends, and they loved her. Any friend of Lynne's knew that the love they gave her would come back to them ten times over. She never missed the chance to catch up with a friend--especially if a glass of wine was involved. The strength of her friendship is reflected in the time and distance over which it endured. Lynne enjoyed reading, cooking, discussing politics, baseball, playing cards, the cinema, growing flowers in her garden, the theater, a summer day by the pool, birding, and a number of other activities that were, for her, just a way to enjoy life in the company of people she loved.

A neighbor commented that Lynne was a hero, a model of purposeful living. It is true that Lynne was brave in a way that was not always obvious; from her choice to cross the country and live on Capitol Hill by herself, to the way she handled the unique and difficult circumstances of her own life's twilight, she always found a cause for joy and something to be hopeful about. When she could share that hope and joy with others, she was at her happiest.

Lynne was a daughter, a granddaughter, a sister, an aunt, a wife, a mother, and a good friend. She died in her home in Nellysford, Virginia, on June 16th, with dignity and in the arms of her eldest son. She was turned to fire on the longest, brightest day of the year. Her family and friends share a sense of profound loss at her passing, even as they remember her with sweetness. We loved all of her, but could not keep her.