PORTLAND- Jeri Kane Chapman, 64, a longtime resident of Portland, passed away on August 29, 2018. A native of Keokuk, Iowa, Jeri spent her childhood there along the banks of the Mississippi River. She graduated from St. Mary’s College in South Bend, Indiana, where she majored in English and spent a year abroad in Rome. After college, Jeri moved to Boston, where she lived with her sister, Noli, and eventually met her husband, Steve, a musician and computer programmer. Jeri and Steve relocated to Portland in 1986 where they raised their children, Greer and William.
Jeri began her career in the book business, working at Little, Brown and Co. and Appalachian Mountain Club Books in Boston and later as a sales representative for Yankee Books in Peterborough, New Hampshire. Her most recent position was with United Way of Greater Portland.
Jeri loved nature and enjoyed walks with her husband and dogs, Ruby and Tucker, along the banks of the Saco River in Conway, New Hampshire, hiking in the White Mountains with her children, kayaking, swimming, yoga, and watching the sunset and listening to loons from the porch of the family camp in Conway. Her trips to Ireland with her husband and parents were particularly meaningful to her. She cared deeply about the environment, and put her beliefs into practice by living simply and thoughtfully. She was a gifted pianist, an avid reader and loved John Singer Sargent, Edward Hopper, art deco and all things bungalow. Her friends can vouch she loved nothing more than a good house project.
Jeri was genuinely interested in other people’s lives, and people felt at ease telling her their stories. A keen observer, she loved talking with shopkeepers, visiting museums, and traveling, and she remembered details others overlooked. She saw things deeply and helped others to see what she saw. After the birth of her first child, she wanted to give back and volunteered many hours over the years to tutoring and mentoring immigrants in the Portland area. She gave herself entirely to her family, especially her children, and she will be remembered as an involved and devoted parent, a loving wife and friend, a rooter for the underdog, and for her sensitive and compassionate ways.
Jeri is survived by her husband Steve, her daughter Greer of Portland, her son William of Maui, Hawaii, and her sister Noli of Manitou Springs, Colorado, as well as by Noli’s husband Steve, Noli’s children Ingrid, Anna, Charles and Greta, Steve’s brother David and wife Sally and mother-in-law Doris Chapman. She also leaves behind many dear friends and extended family members. She is predeceased by her parents, Robert John Kane and Evelyn Bolte Kane.
Visitation will be on Monday Sept. 10 from 1:30-2:30pm at Chad E. Poitras Cremation and Funeral Service Chapel, 498 Long Plains Road (Rt. 22) Buxton, Maine. Online condolence messages can be submitted at www.mainefuneral.com. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to Preble Street Resource Center.