Olive Emma Pitkin Tamm
Thank you for visiting this site. You can enjoy perusing what's here, and also contribute your own words and photos to it, making it richer for everyone. For information on the memorial gathering for Olive to be held on Saturday, September 13, 2025, click on, or scroll down to, "Live Event." All are welcome.
Obituary
Olive Emma Pitkin Tamm died on Wednesday, August 6, 2025. She was 102 years old.
Olive was born on July 10, 1923, in St. Johnsbury, VT. She grew up in Bennington, VT, and graduated from Bennington College (B.A. 1943) and the Yale University School of Medicine (M.D. 1947). After several years of pediatric private practice, first in her hometown and then in Minot, ND, Olive settled in New York City with her husband Igor Tamm (m. 1953), a former medical school classmate, and devoted her career to public health; at the time of her retirement in 1982 she was an Assistant Commissioner in the New York City Health Department, in charge of all maternal and child health services. After retirement she and Dr. Tamm lived full-time in Watch Hill, RI, where they had built a home and vacationed for many years. In 2012 she moved to the StoneRidge Community in Mystic, CT. From 2018 until her death she resided with her older daughter in Tigard, OR.
Olive nurtured four great loves with pride and joy over her long, rich life: Love of Family (the Pitkin and Hulett clans from which she sprang, and whose values of hard work, grit, responsible citizenship, kinship with the land, intellectual curiosity and artistic expression she passed on to her descendants—her husband—her children and their families); Love of Words (voracious and eclectic reading—merciless Scrabble playing— endless crossword puzzles—long letters, sometimes laid out as newspaper articles, with hilarious tales of everyday events reported with great wit—the family tradition of writing a poem, the longer, more ornate and zanier the better, to accompany each gift at Christmas); Love of Classical Music (Mozart and Bach most all of all—singing, playing piano and violin— ardent patronage of the opera, the ballet, and choral and chamber music); and Love of the Domestic Arts (astonishing skill, creativity, and productivity in sewing, knitting, embroidery, furniture refinishing, cooking, and gardening).
In her retirement Olive was an active member of Christ Church, Westerly, RI; did extensive volunteer work for Musica Dolce (a classical chamber music organization), the Chorus of Westerly, and the Westerly Public Library; and pursued her deep interest in writing. Having authored several novels, which she thought were so terrible she didn’t want anyone to read them, she decided to “write about what she knew.” The result was two published books: There and Then, a memoir of her childhood in Vermont, and My Garden and I, which recounts her horticultural endeavors.
Olive is survived by her three children: Carol McKee, Eric Tamm, and Ellen Oak; four grandchildren: Margaret Irshad, Lilia Tamm, Katherine Oak, and Alexander Oak; and four great-grandchildren: Sarah, Issa, Noah, and Aza.
In keeping with her lifelong passion for learning, Olive gave her body to the Oregon Health and Science University for research and education. In two to three years her cremains will be returned to the family, and a private ceremony to inter the ashes will take place at the Park Lawn Cemetery in Bennington, VT.
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I’m 47, so, obviously, she was always quite a bit older than me, but she and I had a very fun friendship dating back to when I was quite a bit younger. I sang in the Chorus as a kid and a teen in the 1980s and 1990s, then left for college and the working world. But I came back into the Chorus world in 2005 as a board member and a few years later was on the executive committee with your mom. We became fast friends and when I was hired as executive director in 2009 - a position I still hold - she was there all the time with us. Volunteering in the office, editing our programs, and faithfully on the executive committee. She also watered our plants so faithfully! I just loved her. And when she couldn’t drive anymore to the building I missed her dearly.
Anyway, I know that this is a big loss for your family. But please know the Chorus of Westerly is so grateful to the love she gave us for so long and here at camp, with my adult team we just took a moment to honor her. She was special to many of us.
Olive was on the Board when I first started as Executive Director of Westerly Library and Wilcox Park. I have fond memories of her that I will cherish.
Olive was a good friend of my Mother and Olive's Mom and Dad always had a beautiful garden . I would walk up to their house and Olive or her Dad would take me out to the garden . I'd always go home with some produce .
As I grew up , I lost touch with the Pitkin family as we all moved apart , however my memory of Olive and her parents are still quite vivid and I , very much , remember them as very Special people .
It’s sad, of course, to lose such a wonderful family member, friend and colleague, but looking at the photos and reading even just the beginning of tributes, this made me feel so warm deep inside.
Thank you for sharing!!!
We went to the ballet and opera together for many years. She always took me to dinner on these occasions, usually somewhere that served crême brulée. She included me in her great hospitality and took my vegetarianism as a personal challenge, inventing some interesting dishes for me and inspiring me to make multi-course meals myself. She also loved visiting my 400 sf NYC apartment which she called "Bohemian." She talked to me frequently about her family and in fact inspired me (without advising: she taught by example rather than preaching) to overcome divisions in my own family. My late husband was extremely fond of Olive and they admired each other's books; as a historian he considered her autobiography valuable source material.
When I became a Catholic, Olive was delighted, buying me a crucifix and hosting a big dinner for me before the Easter Vigil where I was confirmed. It was a bit of a shock when she announced with a bit of pride, at about 99, that she was no longer a Christian, but I have no doubt of her final destination. She cultivated Christian virtues and good habits all her life. I think she may even have cultivated her wonderful smile, being a natural introvert. I know she cultivated her social skills (at one time she was reading multiple books on how to make small talk). I always remember the real estate listing for my current home saying "they don't make them like this any more" (which in the case of my house is a good thing). I think that's true of Olive too, though it's not a good thing. She was legendary among my friends and family for many years. I thank God for her life and friendship.
Live Event
Singing was near and dear to Olive's heart, and there will be lots of it during the ceremony—rounds, hymns, chants, an anthem or two. Olive loved the process of rehearsing perhaps even more than she enjoyed the performance. Our practicing and eating together will give us all a chance to get acquainted with the music and one another, enriching the experience of the ceremony for everyone.
If it works best for you to attend parts but not all of the event, that is totally fine. Please come as you can and as you are.
If you are unable to attend in person and would still like to connect, use the Zoom link below for the livestream of the ceremony. if for some reason you need them—Meeting ID: 836 6888 4470 and Passcode: 431157. You can also view and download the program for the ceremony by clicking the buttons below.
Musical scores and audio files for most of the pieces we'll sing are uploaded here— https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1A982AxRudOt1PiIbo7A7Le-BG-fbalAY?usp=share_link
Hard copies of the music will be given out at the rehearsal.
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