Richard Carl “Dick” Bartholomae

Richard Carl “Dick” Bartholomae died peacefully on June 27 with family by his side. He was 93. Dick was born in Detroit, Michigan on July 6, 1925 to the late Carl and Lucy Bartholomae. In 1930, the family moved to Long Island where Dick attended elementary school. Moving once more to New Jersey, he graduated from Chatham High School in 1942. He enrolled in Princeton University in September of 1942 and in 1943 he enlisted in the Navy and enrolled in the Columbia Midshipman’s School. Graduating as a commissioned officer a year later, he was assigned to the Pacific Fleet. He served in combat until August 1945 and occupation duty in Japan until July 1946. He then returned to Princeton and graduated with a degree in Economics in 1947. Dick began his professional career with the FW Woolworth company in New England, but returned to Chatham, NJ, to work in advertising for Hearst Publishing in New York City. It was in Chatham where he met the love of his life, Charlotte Anne Kenney. They were married on Oct 29, 1955, beginning a loving partnership which lasted 59 years. After six years in advertising, he accepted a position on the executive staff of the American Management Association. He preferred the work, and it allowed for more days at home with his young family. Sixteen years of productive corporate work in the metropolitan NY area were not enough to fend off the appeal of a small town in New England. In 1963, Dick and Charlotte bought the Four Winds Motel in Manchester, VT, and relocated with their 2 sons, Greg (3 yrs) and Eric (1 yr). They expanded the motel and ran a successful lodging business for 15 years. During his “spare time” Dick served on the Board of the Vermont Hotel Motel Restaurant Association. In that role, among other activities, he helped rally support from the lodging industry to pass one of Vermont’s landmark laws, the banning of highway billboards. In the late 60s, seeing the need for access to golf for Manchester’s growing fulltime and seasonal population, Dick, along with a small group of local friends, conceived of and developed the Manchester Country Club where he served as its first president. MCC remained one of his proudest and lasting accomplishments. In 1969 he took a seat as a director of the Factory Point National Bank and continued to serve on the board, including as Chairman, until the late 1990s. An ardent believer in education, Dick also served as a Trustee for Burr and Burton Seminary (now BBA) for many years. Seeking a new challenge, Dick and Charlotte sold the Four Winds in 1978 and shortly thereafter opened Bee’s Hallmark Shop in Manchester, where they could be found for the next 17 years. In winter he spent some mornings at Bromley Mountain selling lift tickets where he would greet the residents and tourists alike whom he so much enjoyed. By 1995 after many years of full-time work obligations ranging from corporate to family owned businesses, Dick retired. In his retirement he and Charlotte enjoyed many happy years playing golf at both MCC and Ekwanok Country Club, travelling the US and abroad, and spending time with their sons and families. For two decades the family home was the gathering place for holidays and vacations. Still thriving on community involvement and having a deep love of his adopted hometown of Manchester, Dick was named by Sarah K. de Coizart to the board of her charitable trust. In this position, he worked tirelessly up to his death seeking to secure funding for many schools and not-for-profit organizations, both local and throughout New England. This work provided him the ability to stay connected and contribute to the community that he so much enjoyed and felt had given him and his family so much. He will be deeply missed by all those he touched. Dick is predeceased by his wife Charlotte, and his only sibling, Jane Keely. He is survived by his son Greg and wife Cally and their sons Justin and Ethan of Jefferson, ME, and son Eric and wife Janice of Dover, MA and their son Eric Jr. and daughter Sarah, both of New York City. Family and friends will gather on July 20th at the Manchester Country Club at 10:00 a.m. to celebrate and remember his life. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Dick’s name to the charity of one’s choice.