Rachel M. Bartlow-McHugh

Rachel Michelle Bartlow-McHugh passed away on June 28, 2023. She is survived by her loving and adoring husband, Kevin McHugh and stepsons, Kalem and Aiden McHugh, her loving and devoted mother, Paula Bartlow, her loving sister and best friend, Laura (Brian) Hulbert and her loving brother Nick (Kellyn) Bartlow, her father-in-law, Edward (Debbie) McHugh, brother-law, John (Lisa) McHugh, her uncle, Keith (Lisa) White and her aunt, Karen Ferrier, her niece and nephews, Caoilainn, Seamus and Declan O’Hara. Rachel was predeceased by her father, William Bartlow and her mother-in-law Marylou McHugh Holmes.

Rachel got her Ph.D. at The University of Chicago Booth School of Business. She was employed at Southern Tier Independence Center for the past 18 years where she just recently became the comptroller. She loved life and had a great many passions. One of those was football. She grew up watching the Vikings with her Uncle Keith and has remained a staunch Vikings fan, traveling to watch her Vikings take on her families favorite teams; at Steelers games with Nick and Kellyn, at Bills games with Laura and Brian and at Jets games with her husband, Cubby, all the time sitting amongst the other team but wearing her Vikings jersey and horns, cheering on her beloved Vikings in a sea of the other teams fans. When she believed in something it was full on. Rachel was sweet, kind, funny and amazingly loyal. Her friends will all tell you she was the best friend you could ever wish to have, and many of them considered her just that. When she loved you it was beyond measure and you could feel her love surround you with happiness.

Rachel loved art, music and Broadway plays. She and her mother attended many, many Broadway plays together. Rachel loved to decorate, especially at Christmas time. Friends and family who would visit her can attest that her house was beautifully appointed but at Christmas it came alive with the season and rang loud with tidings of her love for the holiday. She also made sure to honor her father’s favorite holiday, Halloween, making sure to construct the Halloween village he gave her.

She had a great sense of humor and wit. The family all have t-shirts letting us all know “who was loved the most.” Her laugh was infectious, her curiosity unending, her loyalty unflagging. Rachel was an adventurer. Her sister and she had many memorable camping trips, theme park visits and road trips all with a story to tell of it could only happen to Rachel. She had annual football weekends with Nick and Kellyn always getting in a WVU Mountaineers game and a Pittsburgh Steelers game with some memorable tailgating. And the annual trek to South Bend for a Notre Dame game with Cubby, Laura and Brian. She loved traveling, visiting Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France, Bahamas and Ireland. Her and her husband, Cubby’s most fond memory was their trip to Ireland. She also traveled around the U.S. visiting nearly all 50 states recently driving to N.C. to visit with her close friends, Christine, Danielle and Gayann. Also there were the 6 degrees of Rachel, everywhere she went she would meet someone that knew someone who also knew someone that she knew, no matter how far she was from home.

Rachel had some quotes she liked and one of her favorites was, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss.

The family will receive friends on Friday, July 7th from 4pm to 6pm at the Thomas J. Shea Funeral Home, Inc., 137 Robinson Street, Binghamton, NY. Private services will be held for the family. Donations in her honor can be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital or the Southern Tier Independence Center.

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