Nancy Ehrhardt White of Dorset, VT passed away peacefully on July 22nd, 2021, surrounded by her loving family. She is survived by her three children, George C. Bambara of Stowe VT, Alicia Bambara Fish of Baltimore, MD, and Nan E. Bambara of Dorset, VT, and five grandchildren, and is predeceased by her son, A. Paul Bambara, Jr., her husband Anthony Paul Bambara, and her second husband Carl H. White, Jr. Daughter of George A. and Dolly Alice Ehrhardt of New Jersey.
Nancy lived in Glen Ridge, NJ until moving to Vermont in 1982. She graduated from The Kimberly School (Montclair Kimberly Academy) in Montclair, NJ, in 1951 and the University of Vermont in 1955, where she was a sister of Pi Beta Phi. Nancy cherished lifelong friendships with her prep school and college classmates. Nancy taught 2nd, 4th and 6th grades at The Radcliff School in NJ from 1955-1960. After the untimely death of her first husband in 1971, Nancy raised her four children as a single mother but also found time to dedicate herself to her community as a lifelong activist and volunteer. She was a tireless advocate for women and children, serving as President of the Junior League of Newark, and Nominating Chair of the Board of Directors of the Association of Junior Leagues International. Nancy later served multiple terms as President of the Glen Ridge Board of Education. As an expert sailor and lifelong summer resident of Normandy Beach, NJ, Nancy was the Barnegat Bay Yacht Racing Association champion in 1954 and again in 1976. She enjoyed sailing her Sunfish on Vermont’s Lake St. Catherine in well into her 80s, surrounded by the Green Mountains that she loved. Nancy was an intrepid outdoorswoman, hiking all the major peaks in the Adirondacks, traveling across five continents until late in her life, enjoying horseback riding, skiing, shooting, fly fishing, canoeing, and birding. She loved her British sports cars and her Scottish Terriers. Nancy was an avid gardener and environmental activist who founded the Dorset/Manchester VT recycling program with a grant from the Shell Oil Company, a project for which she won a national award in 1991. Nancy also served on the boards of the Dorset Library and the Dorset Cemetery, and was a dedicated supporter of the arts and cultural organizations. She sang in the choir at St. Paul Roman Catholic Church in Manchester and very much enjoyed playing bridge and MahJong, pastimes at which she excelled. Nancy served as President of the Manchester Garden Club and maintained spectacular perennial gardens and blueberry bushes. Nancy was devoted to her children and grandchildren, and traveled frequently for grandparents’ days, concerts, recitals, regattas, horseshows, soccer and basketball games, graduations and other family occasions. Nancy always said that in a full and rich life her greatest accomplishment was her children.
A Mass of Christian Death and Burial will take place at Christ Our Savoir Parish in Manchester VT on Thursday July 29, 2021 at 11am.
In lieu of flowers, Nancy’s wish was that donations be made to the Burr and Burton Academy in Manchester, VT, in memory of A. Paul Bambara, Jr. c/o Brewster-Shea Funeral Services PO Box 885 Manchester Center, VT 05255. To send the family personal condolences, please visit www.sheafuneralhomes.com