Charlotte Irene Bartholomew

Charlotte Irene (Cutting) Bartholomew “Casey” Casey was born Charlotte Irene Cutting in Houston, Texas on August 20, 1953, and died unexpectedly of an apparent heart attack at the age of 68 on May 12, 2022. She had no history of cardiac problems and never did get old. Charlotte was nicknamed Casey by her mom for Casey Jones the engineer because she was the last of six kids: the caboose. Toot toot! Born to Molly Cutting after a difficult pregnancy, during which her mom struggled to keep her from miscarrying, it was clear that God had plans for this girl. Though she is still known as Charlotte by her siblings, she began going by Casey in college and thence to the end of her Earthly life. She was always “Casey” to her husband Jerry Bartholomew. Beloved Casey. Casey grew up in Loma Linda, California and attended Loma Linda Academy at the same time Jerry was about 50 miles away at Orangewood Academy; Seventh-day Adventist schools. Both graduated from high school in June 1970. Casey probably got an early glimpse of Jerry in the visiting Orangewood band when, the one year that the school band had a radical director, it performed the Mission Impossible theme. It was invited not to return. Way too racy for a church school. Casey never forgot. Jerry and Casey each attended Loma Linda University, but on separate campuses and in the Spring of 1972, the two met in Casey’s sister’s car on the way to a Bible study. They began dating some weeks later and were engaged to be married five days later. Casey’s folks had moved from Loma Linda to Bakersfield, California by that time. A week-end trip to announce our engagement produced one of my most vivid memories from that era. Casey announced it to eight or ten family members at the dinner table and was met first with a deafening silence then some careful objections from her mother. Her father left the table in silence. Who could blame them? It’s funny, looking back. What seemed like a whirlwind decision has stood the test of time because Casey and Jerry each had earnestly prayed and submitted the selection of a life partner to God. He blessed the marriage and strengthened it with every trial that came along to challenge the bond. They were married in Bakersfield on September 10, 1972. Jerry demonstrated what a great selection Casey had made by lying idly around, unable to work all the previous summer before the wedding, suffering from Mononucleosis, which may have been endemic in the family. Other schools Casey attended included Monterey Bay Academy, Pacific Union College, Lewis-Clark State College, and North Idaho College. It was after our family moved to Coeur d’Alene Idaho in 1993 that Casey pursued an associate degree in nursing, winning her professional credentials around 1997. She worked almost her entire career at Kootenai Medical Center in Coeur d’Alene but retired about ten years ago so that she could set up a Certified Family Care home and provide the assisted living environment required by her son Blair. Casey has three children: a son Blair, born in January of ‘76, daughter Lindsey born in ‘78, and son Christopher born in Iowa in ’84. The first two were born in Anaheim, California, Blair at home on a waterbed. Lindsey was coming out butt first, which required a trip to the hospital. The family lived in California from ’72 until ’82, Washington Iowa from ’82 until ’89, Cheyenne Wyoming ’89 to ’91, Abilene Texas ’91 to ’93, Coeur d’Alene Idaho ’93 to 2004, and finally Moose Creek Ranch in Post Falls Idaho from 2004 until present. Casey’s already busy workload was compounded mightily by her husband’s paraplegia, the result of a broken back; an injury that resulted from a fall while constructing a storage area amid the rafters of the large shop on the property (April 9, 2020). She took on the new tasks with creativity, love, and enthusiasm, and never a complaint. In her spare time, Casey loved to cross-stitch. She had the eyesight and the persistence to turn out images of beautiful landscapes, beloved pets, and wildlife, and even places she had been, like Miss Hathaway’s Garden from Stratford upon Avon in England. Images like this require up to 60,000 individual stitches, and when complete are usually mistaken for photos or prints of paintings. Her home is decorated throughout with her amazingly talented handiwork. Most people are amazed when coaxed to look closely at the work and can then see the individual pixels formed by stitches of different-colored threads. Survivors Casey’s oldest son, Blair is single. Lindsey, is married to Robert Kierna and has two sons, Vinnie and Logan. Christopher is married to Sarah Lickfold who has a son and two daughters from another marriage. They are also rearing two of Sarah’s nephews. Casey has four surviving siblings: Judy Cutting Halverson RN, Dr John Cutting, Betsy Cutting Sears RN, and Dr Tom Cutting. Her father Dr Paul H. Cutting, deceased, was born in Massachusetts. Her mother Muriel (Molly) Atwood Cutting, also deceased was born in a little hospital run by Casey’s grandmother in California. Finally, she is survived her husband of 50 years, Jerry Alan Bartholomew RN, MSN. He was born in Wichita Kansas and his family migrated to Southern California in 1959, when there were still orange groves everywhere. In every corner of Moose Creek Ranch (our cherished haven) are faces that looked forward to seeing her each day; hungry faces, loving faces. Two gentle mares, Diamond and Star, a Sheltie named Bosco, four cats (two of which were simply abandoned in the country) Piper, Romeo, Felicity, and Felix. Finally, a flock of chickens headed by a big black rooster named Blue, and dozens upon dozens of songbirds, one of which perched on her finger as she refilled the feeders. Just like Cinderella. No description of Casey’s life would be complete without including the most crucial element that has so deeply enriched her life. Casey has a devotion to God that has grown steadily since she accepted the free gift of salvation in her teens. She and her husband take no credit for the blessings that have been showered on them and their marriage. The joyous life they share is the product of God’s blessings and his chastening. Those whom He loves, He chastens. Casey would agree that God has His hands on both of us and taking her home at a time that seems premature to our monkey-brains is actually a result of the love and wisdom of God. If, by her death a single person is brought to salvation, it’s totally worth it. The apostle Paul describes the trials of this life as ‘momentary light affliction’. That was a man who was ship-wrecked, beaten unmercifully and repeatedly to the point of death, and even stoned at one point. We believe there is solid evidence in scripture that the Lord is coming to rescue His Bride (the Church) from the looming tribulation that will test the whole Earth, (Revelation 3:10) The souls of those who have died, he will bring with Him, to receive their resurrection bodies. We will see Casey again very soon, and oh what a day of rejoicing that will be! Family requests flowers to be sent to Bell Tower Funeral Home in Post Falls for Casey's memorial service by Thursday May 27th 5pm.