Debra Sidebottom

Debra Sidebottom, 63 of Peterborough, passed away peacefully on November 16, 2023, at Monadnock Community Hospital.

Debra was born in Aurora, IL on September 16, 1960, the daughter of Donald and Nancy (Lindahl) Sidebottom. She finished high school and college in Phoenix, AZ to begin her career as a commercial architect.  Eventually, she moved to Brooklyn, NY to be with her husband, Rick Villaume, where she began to combine her lifelong love of sewing and antiques by restoring and repairing items such as samplers brought to art dealers for framing.  Her reputation grew, and more and more art dealers turned to her for delicate restoration projects.  Her skills eventually attracted the attention of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which hired her to work in their textile restoration area.  Her knowledge and charm made her the face of the department for many dignitaries that came through her section.  She loved her time there.

Debra, along with her husband, moved to Peterborough in 1996.  She loved this area from the first – its scenery, its climate and its people – with all her heart.  One of her proudest moments came just a year after she moved in when two older “natives” pulled her aside and told her she had more “from around here” in her than a lot of the locals, and how glad they were to have her as a neighbor.

Initially Debra took a break from textiles to concentrate on everything and anything that needed to be done to their house, a restoration project of its own.  From painting to clearing underbrush, to guiding contractors, she did it tirelessly and without complaint.  Deb then founded a web-based business – oreillers.com – where she dealt with antique textiles from around the world, creating unique and valuable pillows from some of the textiles.  She was the designer, seamstress, webmaster, customer service agent, and archivist, rightfully proud of what she’d built.

Known for her candor, wit and energy, she was also compassionate and extremely generous.

In addition to her husband, Rick Villaume of Peterborough, Debra is survived by her stepmother, Beth Josephson of Surprise, AZ, a sister Kim Cady of Phoenix, AZ and her husband Clay, and ten nieces and nephews around the country.  She was pre-deceased by her parents, a twin brother Danny and her older brother Jeff.

A Celebration of Debra’s life will be announced at a later date.