Christine Kellstrom

Christine McDowell Kellstrom, of Morristown, died peacefully on July 24, 2024 from complications of a February '24 stroke. Christine was surrounded by family. She was just shy of her 90th birthday, having been born in Evanston, Illinois on August 28, 1934. Cris and her young parents, in 1937, moved to Denver, Colorado to be closer to her mom's brother ( her mother, Mary Margaret McDowell, was a talented artist and a graduate of the Art Institute of Chicago, and found work in Denver as an interior designer). Cris's family stayed in Denver until she went East to Vassar College. She attended the Kent School for Girls and Denver's East High School. Cris had a lifelong love of horses, as she started riding at an early age. Cris became captain of the Hotentots (Denver-based) riding club and rode in hundreds of Denver horse shows. She also skied in the surrounding Rockies ski areas, especially Winter Park (and would ski most of her life, passing the love of the sport onto her children and grandchildren).
After getting scarlet fever as a young girl, Cris became a voracious reader and devoured books. In high school, she was the yearbook editor, and won a Denver Post essay contest. In 1952, Cris was awarded a scholarship to attend Vassar College and went East on a train, ultimately settling in New York after school, working for a bond house. Cris moved to New York City in 1956 to work and met her husband Arne Axel Kellstrom there. They got married at Princeton's Trinity chapel on May 23, 1957 and Cris and Arne were married for almost 60 years until his passing in December 2015. She and Arne moved to New Jersey in 1957 while Arne developed as a young engineer with Ingersoll-Rand (IR) Company. In Short Hills and Summit, they had their first child, Elsa (Emmy). Cris and Arne got their first dog, a beloved Weimaraner, the first of many over the years. They showed their dog in local shows.
Later, Arne got promoted to an Ingersoll-Rand job in Denver, where they spent a happy 5 years at East Floyd Place. Their second two children, Mark and Todd, were born in Denver. It was here that Cris got back into riding, skiing, neighborhood life, and volunteering with the Junior League. After Denver, they moved to Pasadena, California where their yard featured chickens, horses, two Weimaraners and cats (including Cris's rescue cat Pepper). After California, came moves to Painted Post, New York, Mayfield, Kentucky, and finally Basking Ridge, N.J. where Arne was promoted to the Executive suite at the IR headquarters. Starting in the Painted Post/Corning, N.Y. area and extending to Basking Ridge, Cris and her family enjoyed golf and tennis at local clubs and skiing at Greek Peak ski area where the family made wonderful lifelong friends and also got involved with the Greek Peak alpine ski team. Even Cris and Arne entered veteran alpine ski races.
In Basking Ridge, Cris started running after Arne started training for the 1978 New York City marathon. He bet her a beer that she couldn't finish the 1979 race, which he was running with his son Todd. Cris did finish the 1979 marathon, and in fine shape. They also joined Morris County Golf Club in 1972, taking advantage of tennis, golf and social activities and became lifetime, ultimately honorary, members. After their youngest child was in high school, they moved to Houston, Texas. Arne was tapped to run the IR energy business (in the 1981-84 oil boom). It was in Houston that Cris developed her love of photography and she even took college courses in photography to hone her skills. This was also the time that she and Arne dove into serious biking. They joined a Houston bike club and began participating in many long rides.
Cris and Arne went on to bike all over the world, and kept biking until their 80s. (Cris was knownto her bike friends as the "flying granny"). Austria, Singapore and Belgium were their last adventures when Arne got a post-retirement consulting job for an engineering firm and then Ariel Compressors in multiple countries. In Singapore, Cris's photography career flourished. She took photos for the Singapore press, tourist board, and for Expat newspapers and books. From Singapore, Cris and Arne traveled all over Asia. Finally, they settled in Morristown, N.J. in the early 1990s to be near family and near Morris County Golf Club. Throughout their N.J. years, Cris and Arne remained active and travelled with their 8 grandkids.
Cris was known for her intelligence, creativity, sense of humor, and for her love of reading and finance/numbers. She was devoted to her grandchildren, and in June this year, she became a great grandmother when her granddaughter Kirsten had a new boy, Alexander. Cris loved animals, also volunteered at St. Hubert's animal shelter in Madison, N.J. and adopted animals throughout her life. Her last rescue dog, Rocky the Rottweiler, lived with her for 13 years. When Cris turned 85, she took her entire family -3 children, spouses and 8 grandchildren- back to Colorado for her birthday to see a concert at Red Rocks. And, in full circle, her granddaughter Kirsten and grandson-in-law Misha were married in Denver at the Church of the Ascension, the neighborhood church that Cris grew up attending.
Cris was predeceased by her sister Sara Izod. She is survived by her nephew, Max Izod, and by her children Elsa M. Stocker (Dwight), Mark Kellstrom (Cathy). P. Todd Kellstrom (Anne), and her grandchildren Andrew Stocker; Hank Stocker (Emma), Ike Stocker, Melanie Kellstrom, Kirsten Calkins (Misha), Lindsey Kellstrom, Mark W. Kellstrom Jr., Michael Kellstrom, and her great grandchild Alexander Lowell Calkins.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to St. Hubert's Animal Shelter, 575 Woodland Ave, Madison, NJ 07940 or the Morris Museum, 6 Normandy Heights Road, Morristown, NJ 07960.