Bobbi Nancy Elaine Spinner Boettiger, age 76

Resident of Winnetka, Illinois, cherished mother and dear friend to many, Bobbi Boettiger, was born as Nancy Elaine Spinner on August 25, 1949 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. In her early years, she and her parents, Chadwick and Eleanore Spinner, relocated to the outskirts of Denver, Colorado where she played in the rows of her mother's kitchen garden in the yard of a brick home built by her father and uncle's hands. As a young woman she helped those in need as a crisis center volunteer, nurse, and EMT and shared her view of the world as a photographer, writer and darkroom manager for local papers in Colorado and Wyoming. Wild at heart with an ardent love for all things green she spent the first snows of each year in Rocky Mountain National Park and was an advocate for old-growth forests throughout her life.

In 1983, she traded the Rocky Mountains for sunny California where she lived for decades, tending to her rambunctious rose and succulent gardens, delighting in the lack of snow and year-round growing season, and planting as many trees as she could get away with in her Central Valley front yard. As a lifelong learner she held advanced degrees in psychology, justice administration, and nursing. For over twenty years she worked as a teacher at West Hills Community College, serving students in the ESL and Students with Disabilities programs. Her journey with addiction, loss, and domestic violence culminated with 53 years of sobriety and fueled her commitment as a substance abuse counselor in the community.

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Creativity was threaded through all parts of Bobbi's life: she stage-managed student plays, played the flute, piano and piccolo in the marching band and at church. As an experienced multi-media visual artist she worked with stained glass, needlework, ceramics, and painting. She found joy in her volunteer work at Project Survival's Cat Haven, caring for and befriending wild cats, and adventure in road and train trips around the US, and travels throughout Mexico, the Caribbean and England. Bobbi treasured her time on the California coast with family and often visited the Sequoia and Redwood forests, always in awe of their quiet majesty.

In 2019, she relocated once more to the Chicago area, where she delighted in watching out her window for her eldest daughter to pass by on daily dog walks. She built a thriving community around herself through the arts programming at North Shore Senior Center, her volunteer work with Community Animal Rescue Effort (C.A.R.E.) in Skokie, and attending both Sunday dinners and music concerts with family.

She is survived by her daughters, Sheri Fisher and Misti Boettiger, granddaughters Morgan (Emma) Koppa and Madison Fisher, cat Milkshake, granddog Hunter, and grandcats Peaches and Looloo, all of whom she loved dearly. She is forever with us in our hearts, in the rustle of the wind in the leaves, in every rainbow, and in each butterfly that flutters by.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 10 AM at Christ Church (784 Sheridan Road) in Winnetka, IL. Reception will follow in the parish hall. She will also have a memorial park bench refurbished in her honor at Indian Hill Park in Winnetka, IL. To sit and spend time with her, the bench will be facing the playground under the eastern lamppost. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Bobbi's memory to Community Animal Rescue Effort (C.A.R.E.) at carenorthshore.org/donate or via mail at 4927 Main St., Skokie, IL 60077.