Nancy Bartoshesky Lynch of Wilmington, Delaware passed away on December 31, 2025. Matthew Lynch, her devoted husband of 44 years, was by her side. She was 75. While frontotemporal dementia altered her final chapter, it did not erase who she was to those who knew her.
Nancy was a proud Wilmingtonian who spent her childhood and most of her adult years in the Highlands neighborhood. She was a classic “Ursuline Girl” who went on to graduate from St. Mary’s of Notre Dame, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in speech and drama. After college, she studied as a theater fellow at the University of Delaware.
Her dedication to the arts continued throughout her life-long career in arts, government, and non-profit organizations including New Castle County Department of Parks and Recreation, the Maryland National Capital Parks and Planning Commission, the Chesapeake Bay Girl Scout
Council, and the Delaware State Arts Council. She also served as the Director of the Wilmington Arts Commission where she championed the Percent for Art program, which ensured that a percentage of the city’s budget is designated to the arts.
While working in these areas she continued her involvement in theatre by teaching creative dramatics and mime, touring with her own solo mime show, directing for the Wilmington Drama League Chrysalis Players, and serving as a reader, actor, and director for the Delaware Theatre Company’s Young Playwrights Festival.
Returning to her alma mater, Nancy served as Drama Teacher at Ursuline Academy for 15 years, directing over 25 productions and countless classroom and holiday shows. Among these were The Sound of Music, Antigone, Little Women, A Little Shop of Horrors, Godspell, How To Eat Like a Child, Our Town, and A Mid-Summer Night’s Dream. She wrote and produced plays based on Aesop’s fables, American folk tales, and the poetry and music of Shel Silverstein. She also enjoyed several years teaching Middle School American Art History and Upper School Art and Music Awareness.
Nancy believed that everyone deserves access to the transformative benefits of the arts. She embodied this value throughout her career, advocating tirelessly for the arts and expanding access by teaching playwriting at the School for the Chronically Ill Children at the Wilmington Medical Center, Ferris School, and Sienna Hall. She took great joy from volunteering with the Delaware Theatre Company’s Totally Awesome Players program, which is an acting ensemble of adults with intellectual disabilities who create, write, rehearse, and perform their own plays. As part of her commitment to her community, she served on the board of directors of Catholic
Charities for the Diocese of Wilmington, the Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts, the
Wilmington Drama League, the Brandywine Friends of Old Time Music, the Delaware Theatre Company, Delaware Shakespeare, and Ursuline Academy. In recognition of her notable contributions to the arts, Nancy was inducted into Ursuline Academy’s Arts Hall of Fame and Awarded the Delaware Arts Alliance’s Arts Advocacy Award in Leadership.
Throughout her life, she continually expanded her artistic abilities, becoming an accomplished basket weaver, needlepointer, painter, knitter, and jewelry maker. Nancy could leave a musical instrument or hobby on the shelf for years, only to pick it up again as if no time had passed. She loved crossword puzzles; cheering on the Phillies, Eagles, Blue Rocks, and Fighting Irish; listening to bluegrass music; reading mystery novels; and tending to her expansive rose garden.
She could not get enough of her favorite macaroons from the Hotel du Pont, boardwalk fries in Rehoboth, happy hours on Avalon beach, or the toffee from Pizza by Elizabeths. Travelling brought her endless joy, whether it was to New York City for the day or abroad to cities like Athens, where she finally saw the Theatre of Dionysus, which brought her to tears.
But all of this paled in comparison to her love for her family. An endlessly supportive mother, wife, sister, aunt, friend, and grandmother, Nancy especially enjoyed hosting family gatherings and doting on her two granddaughters – Bridget and Lucy. She embodied empathy, even when it was challenging, and believed whole heartedly that giving back was the only way to live life. Gift giving was an artform and love-language for her, and her gifts of time, energy, and kindness were matched only by the countless hand-knit sweaters, baby blankets, hats, and treasured pieces of handmade jewelry she made for friends and family. These are the parts of her story that those who loved her will remember best.
Nancy’s memory is carried on by her husband, Matthew Lynch; daughters, Mamie Voight (Derek) and Reggie Lynch (Mark); granddaughters, Bridget Voight and Lucy Arehart-Lynch; siblings, Louis Bartoshesky (Patricia); Florence Lathrop (Stephen); Philip Bartoshesky (Lisa); and Julie Ross (Richard); and many adoring nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents Mary Dougherty Bartoshesky and Dr. Stephen Walter Bartoshesky.
We offer heartfelt gratitude to the staff at Harbor Chase and Compassionate Care Hospice. Both teams provided comfort, care, and dignity for Nancy, as well as strength and reassurance for our entire family during her final months.
Family and friends are invited to a Celebration of Life in honor of Nancy on Saturday, January 31, 2026 from 11am to 2pm, at the Carriage House at Rockwood Museum. We will be sharing stories as we toast the impactful and love-filled life that Nancy led. Guests are encouraged to wear whatever colors make them happiest, as we will be celebrating a life that was joyfully lived. Ample parking is available, and the program portion will begin at noon.
In lieu of flowers, the family welcomes donations in loving memory of Nancy Bartoshesky Lynch to Ursuline Academy of Wilmington, Delaware. All gifts made in her name will support the school’s new Performing Arts Center project. Donations can be sent to Ursuline Academy at 1106 Pennsylvania Ave Wilmington, DE or online at Ursuline.org/donate.
Condolences
Thank You
Your online condolence will appear once approved by our site administrator.