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41 Comments

  1. Carlos Lisimba Montilla-Smith
    @

    It brings me great sadness to hear of her passing. I have such fond memories of her from my time at school. She was my homeroom teacher as well as a loving mentor and guiding light as I adjusted to being away at school. Her love and compassion for others was beyond measure. Both her and her husband Paul (one of the greatest soccer coaches I ever had) were an enormous impact on me and I will be forever grateful for everything she did for me to grow as a person. My heart goes out to her family and loved ones. Kate and Paul you have my sincere sympathy and I will be holding you all in the light. All who had the pleasure of having Pam in there lives knew the blessings of her kindness and enormous heart.
    Love,
    Carlos Lisimba Smith

  2. Laura Foulke
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    So very sorry that I am just hearing about this now. Deepest condolences to Paul, Bob, Kate, and all of Pam’s family, friends, and colleagues. I have many wonderful memories of sterling Pam, from helping me with my wig for The Mikado to single-handedly ensuring that I acquired the skills of Algebra One and graduated from GS. A wonderful woman whose vibrance, affection and intelligence added so much to the light in my life.

  3. David Eldridge
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    Paul, I am so sorry to hear of Pam’s passing. As you likely remember, she wrote one of my college recommendations. However, you probably don’t remember that she quoted a characteristically verbose made-up term from one of my history papers, “constantly renewing anthropocentricity.” It was so great to work with you both on the Machemer Cup. It would be great to catch up sometime (deldridge1967@gmail.com; 610-724-1904). Please know that I am holding you, your family, and our GS family in the light.

  4. Mo West
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    Bob and I will never forget the times we spent with Pam and Paul over a fine meal with engaging conversation and much laughter. The love Pam expressed when speaking of her children and her students, the care and support she showed our daughter Emily ’05 as her college counselor and then someone in attendance as Emily was married, and her zest and passion for all things GS will be in our memories and our hearts always. Her gifts were endless and her friendship unflagging; she will always be present in the lives of the people she touched — but never more than her beau Paul and her beautiful children Robert and Kate. Her Light is here forever.

    Love,
    Mo & Bob West

  5. Hyea Won Lee '08
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    Pam was my college counsellor but my memories of her are much more than that. Pam was somebody I imagined myself racing to be hugged whenever I felt lost and had a hard time as she gave me such confidence and was supportive with genuine encouragement. I was an international student with no clue what it meant to go to college (or more precisely, to go out of George School and live in a foreign country), and her support and guidance were what made me grow as an individual. Sending my deepest thoughts to Paul and the Machemer Family, and rest in paradise Pam.

  6. Chris Rivinus
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    I will miss Pam very much, my mother away from home. Wish I could share a hug and reminisce in person. Hopefully someday soon.

    All my love,
    Chris Rivinus ’88

  7. Ellen Meranze '84
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    So many memories. Pam and Paul were the class advisors for the class of 1984, of which I am a member. I met Pam in September 1980, and soon after the Machemers and the Meranzes became friends. I was always struck by the kindness of Pam’s smile and of her eyes. She had a way of putting you at ease and reassuring you that there was a solution to every problem. As my family and I reminisced about Pam, we all agreed that her kindness and gentle way of guiding was so special. We are all so grateful to have had such a long and wonderful relationship with Pam and Paul. I send my deepest sympathies to Paul, Kate, and Bob. I send them for us all. We want you to know that we loved Pam so very much. We know that she was loved by so many. We also know how much she loved each of you and how proud she was of all of your accomplishments. I, and my family, will continue holding you all in the light and in our hearts!

  8. Sabrina Ferguson
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    The Machamer Family were our neighbors and trusted my sister and then later myself with the care of Paul & Pam’s little ones. As parents & teachers Paul & Pam were kind, wise and inspirational. I always wanted to do better for both of them. Pam’s loving light is just so present in her children who have turned into stellar people. My family offers our deepest sympathies to Robert, Kate & Paul.

  9. Karen Diamond
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    My memory of Pam will always be with a smile on her face. I, too, babysat for little Bob my senior year in Main, especially during the time Pam had a cast on her arm. I don’t recall how she broke her arm, probably because even then, she was smiling. When I returned to GS to teach in 1979, she became a great friend. She was fun, witty, and crazy smart. Although I hadn’t seen her in a number of years, I always knew that she and I could pick up right where we left off once we reconnected. Much love to her family; she will be sorely missed.

  10. Dottie and Barry Coppock
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    s young married couples and parents, the Machemers and we spent an enormous amount of time engaged in our respective GS positions; doing duties "incidental to boarding school life"; relishing family and adults-only meals and parties; and feeling blessed to be part of the close, supportive George School community.

    We moved to Colorado in 1987 and then to Illinois in 1990, where Pam and Paul often visited us on their summer driving trips to/ from California. In 2017, we happily returned to Newtown, but in the intervening years from 1987 to 2017, we saw Pam and Paul every time we were in PA. We treasure the bond of true friendship, the value of common experiences, the cement of shared values, and the sheer joy and rewards of being an integral part of the George School community and each others’ lives.

    We miss Pam, but to us, she always will be the epitome of strength, jubilance, professionalism, thoughtfulness, and commitment. Paul, Robert, Kerry, Kate, Karl, Athena and Arthur, your lives have been graced by the love and influence of an amazingly dynamic, engaged woman.

    Affectionately,
    Dottie and Barry Coppock

  11. Rohan M. Arjun '05
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    My GS experience was bookended through interactions with Pam. She was my 9th grade math teacher and then my college counselor. I am fortunate to have been one of the many students whose lives she touched through her love, light, laughter and passion for education. Thank you for all that you have done, my friend.

  12. John Gleeson
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    Pam added so much to the entire George School community. She was a warm, loving and insightful member of the George School family whether in the classroom, supporting Paul on the soccer field, serving on so many committees, or being a kind and giving advisor. I knew from the day I served as usher in their wedding that she and Paul were an ideal couple. Their presence has graced the George School campus for over fifty years. When Paul and I co-headed Orton Pam was really the guiding light who directed us. Her many contributions will live forever

  13. Cindy class of 82
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    Best advisor ever! I first took European history with Pam, where she shared her love of history and the stories we should never forget. I loved every moment and was blessed beyond measure by her counsel and care, especially during the college search process. I haven’t seen her in years but I remember well her warmth, smile, humor, and care. Thank you for changing my life for the better and helping to make GS such a transformative time for so many of us. My heart goes out to Paul and your family and those you leave behind.

  14. Mary H. Bell
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    I was a Westtown classmate of Pam’s. She was always warm and kind and consistently demonstrated honesty and great integrity. Although the two schools chose the same weekend for their Alumni Days, we did have a chance to touch base for which I am grateful.
    It is no surprise that Pam led a life that enriched so many friends, students, family members. My sincere sympathy.

  15. Yattah Jones '05
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    Pam was my Algebra 2 teacher and I will always remember her being to clear and concise in her teaching style! I felt her sincere love for teaching and her students. She kept it real! She took her time to explain things to me and I never felt judged. I loved that about her then and always. Rest in peace.

  16. Margaret Stephens Enos
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    I first met Pam in the old History office in the basement of Bancroft September, 1981. I was fresh out of graduate school, new to teaching high school and new to dorm living. Pam proved a wonderful guide and friend as I settled into my new situation; her life was a demonstration that if you love your students and love your subject, you can’t go wrong.

  17. Bob Baker
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    I remember Pam as a good friend at Oberlin. I have not seen her for over 50 years (except, possibly, briefly at a class reunion — I’m getting too old to remember). Her passing somehow hit me harder than I would have expected. I’m glad to hear she has been a strength for so many over the years.

  18. Teri MacBride
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    Pam and Paul were new parents and floor parents in 1974 when they allowed me to babysit in their cozy apartment, a welcome respite from the drudgery of dorm living. So clever she was, that I never knew if they actually needed babysitters. I just felt she always so kindly and warmly helped me. RIP Pam!

  19. Zanna Gilbert '93
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    I always looked for Pam when I returned to campus, and I’m grateful to have had the chance to hug her at our last reunion. She was so special. Holding Pam and the Machemer family in the light.

  20. Jim and Judy Gibbons
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    Pam was a dedicated educator, both in the classroom and as an advisor. Always patient she listened not lectured. Pam was a loving spouse to Paul and always supportive of Kate and Robert. She was a gift to George School; her nurturing spirit will remain with others long into the future. We extend our love to Paul and family, and remember the many years Pam was in their lives.

  21. Pamela Williams
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    I send thoughts to the Machemer family, and the GS family, for Pam being a model teacher and advisor, who also helped my daughter in the college process. She and Paul’s cordial greetings, and sense of dedication during campus events, parents weekends will remain a notable memory.

  22. Sara Shepperd GS ‘87
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    I’m so sorry and send thoughts to Paul, Robert & Kate (who remains 5 years old in my mind) I loved Pam’s European History class; she taught out of the box and made the subject enjoyable for once in my history-class career. Im relieved she passed in peace ?

  23. Walton Hathaway
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    Pam was the model for a wonderful teacher and friend. Her positive attitude, upfront sharing of what was important, and great sense of humor made it a joy to be in her presence. She was at every soccer game cheering on the students and Paul and the kids really appreciated it. She was famous for being one of most engaged advisers and I was always happy when my advisees switched to her because I knew they would receive excellent care. I will miss her warm hugs at Alumni Day, It was an honor to be on the discipline committee with Pam for many years. She was always fair with the students and sought to do what would be in their best interests for the long haul. Thank you so much for all you have done for all of us at George School. We love you.

  24. Tara Chambers
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    Sending peace to ALL the Machemers! Sending frequecy 3 and 16!

  25. Barbara Kibler
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    I’m going to miss you. I’m glad we got to share a few meals outside of GS. You always made me laugh and I always felt your warmth and caring. I also remember how many times you checked my end of term reports! I loved your dry wit and I always tried to sit at the same table with you in the dining room. Your love and support of the arts was true from the very beginning as Robert worked with Michael Sherrin and I had Kate in dance. Your complete devotion to the school and to your family never wavered. Sending Gratitude, Love and Light. You are missed but I still hold you in my heart. Blessings and Love to all the Machemers.

  26. Ross H
    @

    Pam was a wonderful force in my life. She helped me find my alma mater Oberlin, and through her warm and gentle spirit, made George School feel like home. Holding the Machemers in the light.

  27. Adam Tabor
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    Pam meant the world to me at GS and beyond. I may not have always appreciated it at the time but, as my advisor and mother away from home, she did more for my life than she could ever have known. Certainly more than I could ever repay or articulate. Let’s be frank, I wasn’t the most amicable young man when I stepped foot on GS campus. Pam, however, was undeterred. She welcomed me and gave me the tough, motherly love I needed. She put an arm around me when I needed it. She told me to shape up when I needed it. Her words never rang hollow as she always put in the time and energy to mold me into a better version of myself. It felt easy with her partly because we were always able to laugh. She was as serious as we needed to be but never more which made her relatable. Don’t get me wrong, the entire community benefited from her presence. I just think I may have needed it more than most although I don’t think I’ve ever admitted that out loud. (And no, I don’t think I hid it very well either.) She just knew me and knew how to connect with me.

    I could easily go on to highlight a litany of moments but none, individually, would do justice to what they meant to me in their entirety. I would not be where I am today. When I reflect on my life to date, family aside, there is perhaps no one that has influenced my life more than Pam.
    She transformed my trajectory. Fostered my redeeming qualities. Helped me become self-aware enough to (eventually) minimize the bad ones. And broke down my adolescent walls when no other adult could.

    To the Machemer family, I love you all. You carry a legacy others should aspire to. You all have my utmost respect and admiration. I think of you regularly and will continue to hold you in the light. Be proud of who Pam was to everyone who had the pleasure of connecting with her. Until we meet again…

  28. Eric Cavanaugh
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    When I think of Pam, I think of love.

    Pam taught me math, which I use every day, and I love. She encouraged and nurtured my love for history and world events. Pam also showed me what love of a family and community can look like in all the best ways possible.

    I haven’t seem Pam in years, but she’s actually been with me all this time because she had great influence in making who I am today. Holding her family and all that feel this loss in the light.

  29. Carol Pak-Teng
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    My heart goes out to the Machemer family. For me, Pam and Paul were the guiding light of what truly genuine caring humanity means. They helped shape me into the person I am today, for which I will forever be thankful for.

    Her warm embrace and laughter made the world feel safe for so many teens who were trying to figure themselves out. There is no doubt that she will live on through the many people she positively influenced.

  30. Kim Major
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    Send all the Machemers much love and light in this time of sorrow.

  31. winter miller
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    I was just thinking of Pam last week, I hadn’t heard the sad news nor did I realize she was suffering. I had been asked to think of someone who was on my side, who cared about me and who looked out for me. At that moment I felt like maybe I wasn’t serving my family if I said Pam’s name aloud and so I kept it to myself, but I’ll say it out loud here. Pam was a truly beautiful human. She laughed at my jokes, which of course I loved, as she tried to keep me tame in assemblies (blanket apology to everyone except for Kermit the Frog who’s presentation I cracked jokes through, I am sorry for being a pain in the ass). Pam was my advisor and my math teacher and I gave her lots to do. I was terrible at math, and with little confidence to be better at it, the results of a couple of lousy elementary school teachers who didn’t teach me and I fell behind and never caught up and proclaimed hatred for it. As my advisor, Pam really extended her loving heart towards me. I had been sent to boarding school, when I wanted to live at home and be a day student because we suddenly moved. My mom was attending to her own losses of three members of her family sequentially in the space of a year and just wasn’t really able to be there for me in the way I needed. But Pam stepped into those shoes and looked out for me to make sure I was doing okay. And when I wasn’t, she was there to listen. Either Pam or my mother had recommended therapy for me and the person who drove me to and from therapy was Pam. I don’t recall therapy lasting for months, but I do recall that she drove me there in her station wagon and waited for me. As a mother of two, a wife, a teacher, and an advisor to others, I don’t know how she made the time for it. But that was Pam, she had a lot of love to give and she gave it beautifully. I am so saddened by this news, because I would have liked to have visited. And had we had our reunion last May, I would have seen her.

    Paul, Bob, Kate, thank you for generously sharing Pam with so many of us and I hope there’s a balm in knowing just how much she meant to people like me–confident on the outside, sad on the inside–Pam’s softness was so necessary. If at the time of my passing I am loved one one hundredth of how we loved Pam, I shall be well-loved indeed.

    Of course, I was terrible at math, so that fraction could be way off. I will always hold Pam in my heart, and her family too.

  32. Benjamin Smith
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    Pam was my second mother. I have survived this long thanks to her love, patience, and understanding. Life will be more difficult without her.

  33. Kristine Olsen
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    Pam was my advisor at GS, she was always on my side and would do anything she could to make high school life a little easier. We’ve kept up over Facebook the last few years and I will miss her little messages of encouragement about my life updates. She was such a wonderful person and I’m hold her and her family in the light at this time.

  34. Brooke Wells
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    I smile thinking of the authentic laughter that filled Pam’s classroom. Pam’s joy, care, and intelligence brightened every day we spent with her. Thank you, Pam. I will always remember you.

  35. Ellen Carver
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    I was lucky enough to be on the GS faculty for eight formative years in my early career, 1989-1997. Pam’s deep, authentic laugh is what I remember most. She was a warm and witty mother to hundreds of students. The Machemer family is a gift to George School. Warmly, Ellen Carver

  36. Rob Waters
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    “P-Mac” you were a wonderful soul with the brightest smile! You will be missed. Rest peacefully 🙂

  37. Lisa Ward
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    My first memory of Pam (or Bob’s mom) was her big laugh when I was a little girl hanging out with my Dad in the old faculty lounge in the basement of Retford. She was so sharp witted and warm and so loving. Getting bumped down from Paul’s math class never hurt as much as it should, when I landed in Pam’s class. I’m grateful to have known her, for she was a gift.
    Holding you all in the Light.

  38. Brian Z
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    Pam did have an infectious smile. She always had a way of brightening my day, making me look at things from a different angle. I will keepnher in my thoughts and prayers.

  39. Lexi Logan
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    Thank you, Pam. Thank you for lifting the spirits of so many teens that struggled. Thank you for shining and sharing your light. Thank you for giving us your humor, your trust, and your passion. Thank you, Pam. I will miss you, and know you’ll be missed by so many.

  40. Nadia W.
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    During my time at GS (’90-’94), I never saw Pam not smiling. Never. May her light shine forever.

  41. Terry Tuttle
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    My wonderful friend will be missed.