Born April 11, 1939
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Died Aug. 16, 2025
Shelburne, Vermont
Details of services
A memorial service will be held at the Cathedral Church of Saint Paul, 2 Cherry Street, Burlington, Vt., on October 11, 2025, at 2 p.m. For those in attendance, we encourage you to wear clothing in the bright blues and greens and purples that Debby loved.
Arrangements are in the care of Ready Funeral and Cremation Services. To send online condolences, please visit cremationsocietycc.com.
Deborah Butterfield Galbraith, of Shelburne, Vt., died in her residence at Wake Robin on August 16, 2025. Born in the Germantown section of Philadelphia, Penn., in 1939 to Right Reverend Harvey Dean Butterfield and Carolyn Whitney Butterfield, she moved with her parents and older brother, Whit, back to her parents’ home state of Vermont when her father was appointed to the Episcopal parish in Rutland. She finished high school in Burlington, Vt., where her father was made dean of Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church (now Cathedral) and then elected as the sixth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Vermont, while her mother served the community of Burlington through organizations such as the Lund Home.
Deborah met her beloved husband, Peter Dugald Galbraith, when they were students at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, N.Y. They were married at Rock Point in Vermont in 1961. After a stint living in Queens, N.Y., they returned to Burlington, Vt., before spending four years in Philadelphia, Penn. Through the course of their marriage, they made homes for their family in Vermont, Pennsylvania, western New York and Connecticut, with their compass always pointing to a return to their cherished Vermont.
Debby Galbraith (Nana) is survived by her husband and their three children, Gretchen, Michael and Kevin, and by her treasured children-in-law and grandchildren. Gretchen and her spouse Peter Anderson’s children include Alexander Romero Galbraith, Chris Anderson, and Danni Anderson and their husband, Aaron. Michael and his wife Marthe Galbraith’s children are Marlowe and Willoughby Galbraith. Kevin and his wife Elizabeth Bracken’s children are Brooks, Sasha and Vivienne Galbraith. Deborah is also survived by her dear brother, Whitney Butterfield; his wife, Joyce; their children, Chris, Steve, David and Andrea; their spouses and children; and by cousins in the Butterfield and Whitney branches of her family.
In the 1970s, Deborah decided to follow her dream of becoming a nurse, earning her degree at the University of Vermont and holding positions at Mercy Hospital in Buffalo, N.Y., and Hartford Hospital in Connecticut. While she was reluctantly pulled into administrative roles, her calling was for working directly with patients; she especially loved working with mothers and their newborns. Deborah and Peter returned to Vermont in the early 1990s, when Peter took up the role of State Epidemiologist. Deborah served as nurse for the Lund residential program before retiring. In retirement, she worked extensively with successive waves of refugees to Chittenden County, beginning with the young Sudanese men who arrived in the early 2000s, and made a deep impact on so many Vermonters. Her retirement years also included deep engagement with the Cathedral Church of Saint Paul community and choir; the 125-year-old Fortnightly book club to which her mother and aunt had belonged; knitting colorful hats and socks; adventures in camping, hiking and kayaking with her extended family; and entertaining and traveling to see her grandchildren.
Debby’s family is deeply grateful for the care, professionalism and empathy of the staff at Wake Robin and Bayada Hospice team. In honor of her loving, empathetic and more than slightly impish spirit, the family encourages you to plan an adventure with loved ones (preferably including good food) and love each other fiercely. Please consider donations to an organization that supports refugees or maternal and child health or to Rock Point Commons in lieu of flowers.
