Elaine Small, an administrative assistant to the vice president for development at the College, died at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center on April 21 from sepsis affecting multiple organs, according to her son Luther Small. Family and colleagues remembered Small, who was a College employee for over 10 years, as dedicated, family-oriented and light-hearted, according to Ruth Borrell, an assistant to the vice president for development. Small was 59.
In addition to working in the College's development office, Small worked with Dartmouth Medical School's department of community and family medicine and the DMS Office of Community-Based Education and Research, according to Borrell. Approximately two months ago, Small went on disability leave to battle the infection that eventually claimed her life, Borrell said.
Ernest Small, her husband of almost 43 years, remembered his wife as fun-loving and adventurous.
"She was a super lady," he said. "She went to Rome and met the Pope, she went on cruises and swam with dolphins she just loved adventure."
The pair found adventure even when at home in White River Junction, often exploring the New England outdoors, Ernest Small said.
"When we were first married, we used to build rafts and raced them against each other in the White River," he said.
Small's interests included cake decorating, swimming, hiking, quilting, softball and cooking, her husband said. The pair married in 1969, at the beginning of Small's senior year of high school, according to a Knight Funeral Homes and Crematory obituary.
Small was highly involved in the local community, her husband said. She played softball for league teams in Hartford, Hanover and Lebanon until arthritis forced her to quit, according to an obituary in the Vermont Standard.
"She played and coached softball and volunteered a whole lot," Ernest Small said. "She was loved by her family and loved by her friends."
At work, Small was both outgoing and hardworking, according to colleagues interviewed by The Dartmouth. Her presence in the office "will be missed," Borrell said.
Jennifer Schiffman, who worked with Small at DMS and the development office, said Small had a rigorous work ethic and always made sure her work was "done quickly."
"Her attention to detail was extraordinary," Schiffman said. "She was just one of those people you could always depend on." Schiffman is an assistant director for the Dartmouth Center for the Advancement of Learning's Office of Research and Innovation in Medical Education.
Small was an invaluable asset to the office, according to Borrell.
"She was very organized and everything had to be done just right," Borrell said. "She loved working for Dartmouth."
Small's professionalism complimented a warm and friendly personality, according to Beth Harwood, who previously worked with Small in DMS' Office of Community-Based Education and Research.
"She worked incredibly hard and she was incredibly efficient, but she was a lot of fun to work with," Harwood said. "We worked on a lot of programming planning together, and she was always very enthusiastic."
Small was courageous even after she contracted the infection, according to Schiffman.
"Towards the end when she was quite ill, she used to email us funny descriptions of what she was going through," Schiffman said. "Looking back, you realize she must have been undergoing tremendous suffering, but she made it into something funny."
Small is survived by brothers Jay Fletcher, John Fletcher, Fred Fletcher, Jim Fletcher and Frank Fletcher, her two sons Luther and Trever Small and grandchildren Stephen and Kassady Small.
