It is with deep sadness that we have learned that Lee White passed away at the end of last week at the age of 79. On a personal note, I am devastated on so many levels by this news.
Lee has been contributing columns to LymeLine for more years than I can remember. Each one was a true original and her back stories to the recipes she shared were always informative with often a nice splash of humor. They were an extremely popular feature of LymeLine, drawing multiple readers week after week.
What readers did not see, however, were the covering notes that Lee sent to me and another editor with whom Lee shared the same column, which brought at minimum a smile, sometimes a chuckle, and, on occasions, a full-throated, out-loud laugh! Lee always had a tale to tell and she told it with minimum words to maximum effect.
Lee certainly did not mince words nor did she suffer fools gladly, but at the same time she was generous to a fault and one of the most caring people I have ever met. She was full of passion about food (obviously) but also causes in which she believed. She not only served on the Groton Board of Education, but fed its members on occasions along with her family, friends, neighbors, fellow ‘foodies’, former colleagues, election workers … the list is endless.
When she lived in Old Lyme and was my near-neighbor, she hosted parties — sometimes for causes and sometimes for fun — as if it were her job. She was the quintessential host and just a wonderful, vibrant personality to have in the neighborhood.
We will miss her so much here at LymeLine. At this point, I am not sure what we will do about a food column, but in the meantime, we will likely run some of her older columns to honor her memory.
We will publish her official obituary as soon as we receive it.
Visit this link to read a lovely tribute by her friend and the Community Editor of The Day, Lee Howard.
Dear Lee, rest in peace. A bright light in the world of food may have been extinguished but the joy and knowledge it shared will be everlasting.
So sorry to hear about Lee White’s passing today in the Guilford Courier. I did not know her, but always enjoyed her comments and recipes. .May she rest in Peace
I looked forward to her column each week and can’t count how many times I clipped her recipes; prepared meals and learned so much from her “foodie” tidbits. When I use Muir Glen canned tomatoes and think of her at the same time! Rest In Peace Lee and my sincere condolences to her family and friends; the rest of us will dearly miss her. Thank you
Oh, I am SO sorry to hear that Lee has passed! I loved reading her columns, here and in The Day. She was a true gem, and I felt I was eating right there with her. She will be missed. My condolences to her family and to you, too, Olwen. –gv
Thanks for all the kind words and tributes to my mom…it is encouraging and heart-warming to know the impact she made on and for so many around Southeastern CT.
She would gladly tell you to try that recipe you were thinking of…and from this, her only child, I tell you, to try and fail and tweak until you like something and how it works best, for you.
Mom always said I was the “natural cook,” not a cookbook user per se…I cooked in a few East End pubs back in the 1980s while living in Whitechapel (London), and I think my customers thoroughly enjoyed the pies and cookie recipes my mom sent to me that i then regaled them with, after their usual East End lunches…
Much love,
Darcy White
Lee was indeed a special lady, always with a smile and so kind. She will be dearly missed. RIP dear Lee.
Love
Maureen Haseley-Jones