Lenox, Ma, Elaine Panaretos Bowditch – beloved sister, aunt, stepmother, godmother, accomplished singer, teacher, educational administrator, colleague, and neighbor – died at Kimball Farms Nursing Care Center in Lenox, MA, on October 1, 2015, of complications from pancreatic cancer. 

Born March 24, 1928, in Chicopee Falls, MA, Elaine was the first child of Georgia (Dulchinos) and Nicholas V. Panaretos, both immigrants from Greece. Elaine delighted in her Greek heritage and visited both Lagkadia and Aristomenis, the birthplaces of her parents. 

At the age of 13 one of her aunts noted that Elaine had a talent for singing and found her a voice coach, Ruth Ekberg, who kept her as a student for many years. Elaine sang in the Greek church in Chicopee Falls, First Congregational Church in Springfield, and later in Old South Church, Boston. As a teenager she became part of an elite choir under the leadership of Harry Kellogg. Her love of choral music eventually led her to a long tenure as chorister with Boston’s Chorus Pro Musica. She also sang with the Berkshire Choral Institute, and took special pleasure in living her last years near to Tanglewood.

Her other passion was education. She earned a Bachelor’s degree from Boston University, where she made a lasting commitment to the ideals and the women of the Harriet E. Richards Cooperative House, which provides a home for women who could not otherwise afford the cost of university studies. With a Master’s in Education from Springfield College, Elaine took her first teaching job in Newton, MA. She particularly relished her work with 4^th, 5^th and 6^th graders, many of whom remembered her dedication and creativity long after leaving her classroom. In addition to classroom work, she had a distinguished career as a school principal. After retirement she volunteered at the Hampshire College child care center in Amherst, MA where she shared her love of reading and quilting with young children.

In 1970 she married Benson Alvord Bowditch; they made homes in Weston, Conway, and Amherst, Massachusetts, and often spent time with the Bowditch family at their summer home in Maine. After Ben’s death in 2009, Elaine became increasingly active in the caring circle of neighbors on Amherst’s Blue Hills Road. 

Elaine was raised in a family with strong community values. Those carried into her teaching and her commitments as an active citizen. After a frightening incident when she was assaulted in her home, Elaine was determined that her assailant should both confront his crime and have an opportunity for reconciliation. She dedicated herself to restorative justice, and in 2013 the State Senate named her as one of the Unsung Heroines of Massachusetts, citing that she was “Officer to the Amherst League of Women Voters; helped to start the Hampshire County Restorative Probation program with the District Attorney to help people on probation turn their lives around and recognize the harm their crimes caused victims; and served on a Kitchen Cabinet to offer advice and counsel to her state representative Ellen Storey.” She also “adopted” students of Amherst College for weekly visits.

Elaine had a creative bent, especially evident in her needlework. Her sensitive eye for color and her agile fingers created beautiful quilts which she delighted in presenting to her family and friends. Delicate embroidery decorated pillows and scarves, further testimonies to her passion for beauty. 

Elaine was predeceased by her parents and her beloved husband, Ben. She is survived by her sister Dorothea Panaretos Nelson of Jamesville, NY, her niece Sara Nelson (Cyrus Raffii) of Everett, WA, and nephews David Nelson of Niantic, CT, John Nelson (Angela Lomanto) of Niantic, CT and Housatonic, MA, and Tim Nelson of New York, NY; by her stepchildren Thomas (Shari) Bowditch of Fairfax, VA; Ben (Sue) Bowditch of Sebago, ME, and Judy (Tom) Walker of Phoenix, AZ; and by step-grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and godchildren. She is mourned by a host of choristers, colleagues, neighbors, and friends.

A memorial service to celebrate Elaine’s life will be held on Saturday, October 24 at 2:00 pm at First Congregational Church of Stockbridge, UCC. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Elaine’s memory to Chorus Pro Musica (645 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116) or to First Congregational Church of Stockbridge, UCC (4 Main Street, Stockbridge, MA 01262).