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06/20/2024 10:40 AMChristiane B. Beebe passed away peacefully in her home on May 31, 2024, surrounded by family. She leaves behind a son, Stephen; granddaughter Irina; and family and many friends in Connecticut and Florida.
Born in Toulouse, France, in 1936, Chris sailed with her family on the last ship to leave France before the Nazi occupation. She spent the next three years in an internment camp in St. Pierre Miquelon off the Canadian coast, emigrating to the United States in 1943 and settling in Washington, D.C. Chris graduated from Catholic University with a degree in nursing, eventually settling in Madison in 1969, where she and Jack, her husband of 47 years, bought what became Race Hill Farm.
Chris loved animals deeply, and over 45 years, Race Hill Farm (RHF) would become a home for horses, goats, sheep, literally dozens of cats and dogs, and countless other animals. Chris would spare no expense in time and money to rescue whatever animal crossed the threshold of RHF. She also generously contributed to local veterinary practices to provide lifesaving care to animals in need. In addition to her love of all creatures, great and small, Chris was an avid gardener, turning Race Hill Farm into a horticultural masterpiece. Possessed of an inquisitive mind and unbending spirit, Chris was an accomplished horsewoman and business owner and an active partner in Jack’s successful transportation and racing team ventures. She was a magnificent French cook. She was an adventurous and uninhibited traveler, traveling the world with Jack on such adventures as the first revival of the London to Beijing Motor Challenge, a two-month, 9000-mile road trip across two continents last run in 1907!
And this joie di vivre did not desert her after a debilitating stroke in 2016 left her largely confined to a wheelchair. Chris continued to embrace all that life offered, never once showing any self-pity or complaining about her situation. That was just not Chris. She continued to read ceaselessly; went to the symphony; traveled to Virgina – once by car!; went on long “walks” with Dani, her committed caregiver; and lived life to the fullest right up until her passing. Hers was an indomitable spirit. She will be deeply missed.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. graveside at West Side Cemetery on Saturday, June 22, at Race Hill Road, North Madison. Contributions in her memory may be made to an animal shelter of one’s choice. Arrangements are with the Hawley Lincoln Memorial, Guilford.