College news
• The following area students have been named to the Dean's List for the fall 2014 semester at the University of Vermont: Elizabeth Clarke of Brattleboro, a first-year public communication major; Jordan Wyckoff of Brattleboro, a senior early childhood preschool major; Jamie Martell of Brattleboro, a junior civil engineering major; Colby McGinn of Brattleboro, a first-year biology major; Oliver Pomazi of Brattleboro, a first-year neuroscience major; Carlyn Madden of Brattleboro, a sophomore political science major; Cleo Rohn of Brattleboro, a junior English major; Theresa Glabach of Dummerston, a sophomore business administration major; Rustin Nethercott of Guilford, a junior psychology major. Rebecca Potter of Guilford, a sophomore sociology major; Tilden Remerleitch of Guilford, a first-year undeclared major; Jonah Ullman of Jamaica, a junior music major; Stephen Scott of Jamaica, a first-year electrical engineering major; Chelby Nystrom of Brookline, a sophomore business administration major; Olivia Diorio of Putney, a first-year biological science major; Greer Cowan of Putney, a sophomore community & international development major; Tyson Pond of Putney, a first-year biology major; Henry Silbaugh of Putney, a first-year undeclared major; Guillaume Sparrow-Pepin of Putney, a senior computer science major; Hayley Ryan of Putney, a junior history major; Kailey Rinder of Putney, a junior studio art major; Madeleine Dery of Townshend, a senior sociology major; Katherine Amidon of Vernon, a sophomore biochemistry major; Kelsey Pearson of West Dover, a senior exercise & movement sciences major; Jenny Newton of Windham, is a senior psychology major; Shannon Lozito of Wilmington, a junior medical laboratory sciences major; Rachel Hill of Brattleboro, a sophomore psychological science major; Riley Moseley of Brattleboro, a sophomore studio art major; Isaiah Ungerleider of Brattleboro, a sophomore psychological science major; Elizabeth O'Neill of Jamaica, a sophomore early childhood special education major; Rowan Payne-Meyer of Putney, is a first-year sustainable landscape horticulture major.
• Elias Park of Wilmington earned Dean's List honors at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia for the fall 2014 semester.
• Katelyn Donovan, a sophomore majoring in marketing from Putney, was among approximately 2,125 students at Coastal Carolina University in Conway, S.C., who made the fall 2014 Dean's List.
• Lindsay Martin of Brattleboro was named to the Dean's List at Becker College in Worcester, Mass., for the fall 2014 semester.
• Sam Colleran, a television-radio major from Vernon, and Eli Serota, an integrated marketing communications major from West Dover, were both named to the Dean's List for the fall 2014 semester at the Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca (N.Y.) College.
• William Parker of Guilford, a senior majoring in robotics engineering, was named to Worcester Polytechnic Institute's Dean's List for the fall 2014 semester.
• Soren Pelz-Walsh of Brattleboro was one of 13 Castleton State College student athletes recently named to the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference (ECFC) All-Academic Team for his dedication and commitment in the classroom and on the field.
Transitions
• Kate Wageman, FNP, will join the medical staff of Brattleboro Internal Medicine as a family nurse practitioner. She most recently worked at Birchwood Terrace Healthcare Nursing Home in Burlington, where she was a registered nurse in the transitional care unit. She also has clinical experience in family practice, pediatric care, urgent care, and women's health settings. She earned her Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Vermont, and soon after received her certification from the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. She also holds a Bachelor of Science in Wellness and Alternative Medicine from Johnson State College.
Obituaries
• Osmer F. Clark III, 55, of Newfane. Died Feb. 2 at his residence. Significant other of the late Theresa Frank. Brother of Penny Sheedy of Argyle, N.Y.; Bart Clark and his wife, Michelle, of Newfane; Kyle Barcomb of Newfane; Donald Clark of Charleston, S.C.; Brad Clark of Townshend; Gary Barcomb and his wife, Wendy, of Newfane; and the late Brett Clark. Born in Brattleboro, the son of Darlene G. Clark and the late Osmer F. Clark Jr., he attended Townshend schools, graduating from Leland & Gray Union High School. He was employed for many years as a groomer for Mount Snow until his retirement. He was a true outdoorsman who enjoyed fishing, hunting, riding motorcycles, and ice fishing. He also enjoyed reading and had a knack for fixing things. He would spend hours tinkering and repairing motors. Memorial information: Funeral Services will be held in the spring. Donations to Grace Cottage Hospital, P.O. Box 1, Townshend, VT 05353, or the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department, 1 National Life Drive, Davis 2, Montpelier, VT 05620-3702.
• Victoria L. Fletcher, 93, of Saxtons River, formerly of West Townshend. Died Jan. 29 at Grace Cottage Hospital. Wife of the late Lyle Donald Fletcher for 34 years. Mother of Francis Fletcher and wife, Linda, and Michael Fletcher and wife, Alesia, both of Saxtons River; Steven Fletcher and wife, Tonilyn, of Norton; Linda Furgat and husband, Michael, and Marcia Furgat and husband, Edward, both of Rockingham; Dianne Smith of Cambridgeport; and the late Judith A. Bemis, Lyle D. Fletcher, Jr., and Brenda J. Wilkins. Sister of Patricia Franklin of Bellows Falls, Donald Duby of Rutland, and Robert Duby of Hawaii. Also survived by 20 grandchildren, 37 great-grandchildren, seven great-great grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. She was born in Townshend, the eldest daughter of George and Rose (Fife) Duby. In 1939, she married and together she and her husband had nine children. She worked at Mount Snow Ski Resort, for many years as head chambermaid, then later at Mary Meyer's in Townshend, Hodis Jamaica General Store and, more recently, at the Nutshell Co-Op in Wardsboro. She enjoyed reading, doing puzzles and puzzle books, playing Bingo, and listening to music, especially Country & Western. Her greatest joy was time spent with her family. Memorial information: Burial in Houghtonville Cemetery in Grafton will be private at the discretion of the family. A memorial gathering will take place in the springtime at a date and time to be announced. Donations to Grace Cottage Hospital, P.O, Box 1, Townshend, VT 05353, Attn.: Dr. Robert W. Backus. Arrangements under the care of Atamaniuk Funeral Home of Brattleboro.
• Patricia A. “Patsy Fagan” Fowler, 78, of Vernon. Died Feb. 8. Wife of the late Frank Vernon Fowler. Mother of Linda Zuverino and her partner, Richard Houle, of Sebring, Fla.; Laverne Ells and her husband, Corey Ells, of Midlothian, Texas; Lillian Fowler of East Dummerston, Lisa Fowler of Brattleboro, Michael Mowel of Connecticut, Alan Mowel of New York, and the late Laurie Fowler. Sister of Kathleen Slate and Bunny Hogan, both of Sarasota, Fla., and the late Theresa Reynolds and Elizabeth Gould. Born in Brattleboro, the fourth of five daughters of the late Violet Elizabeth Bills and Edward Nelson Beaudry, Patsy Fagan, as she was known in the entertainment field, was very well-known in the New England and Baltimore areas. She performed at many local establishments, jamborees, and numerous community benefits and nursing homes over her 50-year music career. She valued her friends and fans so much that she remembered their favorite songs and would dedicate them to each person by name. She was best-known for her renditions of Patsy Cline songs. Over the years, she was employed by the Bates Shoe Outlet, The Edge Company, and Liberty Mutual Insurance. She was an avid Red Sox fan, loved to cook, and loved jigsaw and crossword puzzles. Memorial information: Calling hours will be Thursday Feb. 12, at Atamaniuk Funeral Home, 40 Terrace St., in Brattleboro from 6 to 8 p.m. A Mass in celebration of her life will be held at St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church in Brattleboro on Saturday, Feb. 14, at 10 a.m. Donations to Vernon Advent Christian Nursing Home, 13 Greenway Drive, Vernon, VT 05354.
• William H. “Bill” Lyon Jr., 51, of Vernon. Died Jan. 31 at his home. Husband of Brenda Longley. Father of Nick, Jacob and Jessica Lyon. Sister of Wilma Patterson of Windham, Maine, Susan Longley of Brookline, Katherine Walker and Sandra Draper of Vernon, and the late Cindy Lyon. A lifelong resident of the area, he was born in Brattleboro, the son of William and Mae (Morine) Lyon. He was raised and educated in Vernon and was a graduate of Brattleboro Union High School, Class of 1981. A carpenter by trade, he was well known for his meticulous craftsmanship. He was very inventive and innovative and could fix or repair just about anything. He worked with his father for many years, eventually becoming self-employed, working full-time on his own until a serious motorcycle accident that occurred in 2012 prevented him from working. A true outdoorsman, he enjoyed hunting, camping, motorcycles and especially looked forward to sugaring every season. He also cherished time spent with his family and friends. Although his accident left him disabled, he continued to be very active up until the time of his death. Memorial information: A memorial service was held Feb. 7 at Vernon Advent Christian Church. Arrangements are under the direction of Atamaniuk Funeral Home.
• Donald W. Rogers, 73, of Bellows Falls. Died Feb. 2. Husband of the late Judith A. Bushway Rogers. Father of Michael Rogers and his wife, Meloney, of Radcliff, Ky.; Scott Rogers and his wife, Lisa, of North Walpole, N.H.; Carol Aslin and her husband, Robert, of Bellows Falls; and Gail Rogers of Westminster. Brother of Jon Rogers of Westminster. Born in Bellows Falls, he was a 1959 graduate of Bellows Falls High School. After graduation, he joined the Army and served until 1962. He worked at Hannifin Lumber in Rockingham, and retired from Flock Fiber in 1997, where he was owner and foreman. He was a member of American Legion Post 37 and the Polish-American Club, both in Bellows Falls. He enjoyed spending time with his family and his dog, Teddy. He also enjoyed gardening, Scrabble, and playing cards. Memorial information: A graveside funeral service was held Feb. 6 in Oak Hill Cemetery in Bellows Falls. Donations to the Humane Society of one's choice. Arrangements were handled by Fenton & Hennessey Funeral Home in Bellows Falls.
• Barbara C. Rosner, 81, of Brattleboro. Died Jan. 30 at Pine Heights of Brattleboro. Wife of the late Henry G. Rosner Jr. Mother of Henry Rosner and his wife, Lorrie, of San Dimas, Calif.; Michael Rosner and his wife, Judith, of Vernon; and Richard Rosner and his wife, Kimberly. of Belchertown, Mass. Sister of the late Harry and Robert Hinsley and Betty Coleman. Born in Worcester, Mass., the daughter of the late Robert and Florence (Haskell) Hinsley, she was educated in the Worcester school system. She was employed for many years as a bookkeeper at BSA. She enjoyed spending her mornings at the gym. She was a very social and friendly person who touched the lives of many people. She loved her family and adored spending time with her eight grandchildren. Memorial information: Services will be held in the spring. Donations to Alzheimer's Association, Vermont Chapter, 300 Cornerstone Drive, Williston, VT 05495. Arrangements are being handled by Ker-Westerlund Funeral Home.
• Martha Laredo Salomon, 80, of West Brattleboro. Died Jan. 31 in New York City. Wife of Frank Salomon for more than 53 years. Mother of Yana, and her husband, Richard Anderson, of Jackson Hole, Wyo., and Lisa, and her husband, Scott Forrest, of Oakland, Calif. Sister of Jaime Laredo and his wife, Sharon Robinson, and the late Ted Laredo and Hannah Janovsky. She was a passionate Vermonter and a resident of the Ames Hill area for more than 30 years, and a summer resident for 20 years prior. Born in Cochabamba, Bolivia, where she spent summers on the family farm, her family moved to San Francisco when she was a teenager. San Francisco was a city that she always considered home and it helped her develop a love for the ocean as well as the mountains. There, she worked for Pan American Airways for a few years and, with friends, would stand by for weekend trips to Hawaii before it was developed and when there were long stretches of beautiful open beach to explore. It therefore seemed fitting that the last week of her life was spent on the beach in Naples, Fla., seeing and hearing the waves rolling in on a white sandy beach with some beautiful sunsets and sharing the experience with her husband and two of her closest friends, Benita Valente and Anthony Checchia. Family was the most important part of her life, and she spent last Thanksgiving and New Year's with them in Vermont. She spoiled her grandchildren with the passion with which she loved them and enjoyed every moment in the process. She was a woman of many talents. Together with Guilford builder, the late Lyndon Squires, in 1983, she converted a barn in West Brattleboro into a warm and inviting year-round house, without the help of an architect. She helped to design flower beds around the barn that were admired by many, and took pride in having an abundant vegetable garden, the contents of which provided many delicious meals since she was a remarkable cook. In their early years in Vermont, she and her husband made many great buys at area auctions that Martha re-upholstered or stripped down to creature “treasures” that they and their friends have enjoyed for a lifetime. She was also an able carpenter and, among other projects, she built a remarkable doll house for her daughters with furnishings collected over the years. Be it their original summer cottage or the barn in Vermont or their apartment in New York City, she made each space into a warm and inviting home. It was her warmth, her smile, and her generosity of spirit that made her so beloved to anyone with whom she came into contact. She was a cherished member of the Marlboro Music School and Festival community, where her husband has been the administrator, together with Anthony Checchia, since 1960. It was at Marlboro that the Salomons met and where their daughters grew up and where they developed lifelong friendships - also with members of the local Marlboro and Brattleboro communities. To her husband, she was his muse, his conscience, and also his partner at Marlboro and for his many other musical projects and for all the wonderful experiences that they shared. To her numerous “adopted daughters” and to many others, she was a warm and loving mother figure as well as a caring friend. To her brother Jaime, she was a constant loving and supportive presence. She will be dearly missed by so many. Memorial information: No service information provided. Donations to the Martha Laredo Salomon Fellowship Fund in care of Marlboro Music School and Festival, 1528 Walnut St., Suite 301, Philadelphia, PA 19102.
• Gaylord Shaw, 87, of Dummerston. Died Feb. 1 at his home. Husband of Jean Shaw for 67 years. Father of John, Doug and his wife, Loren, Steve and his wife, Terry, and the late Scott Shaw. During World War II, he served in the Army Air Force in 1945 and 1946 as a B-29 mechanic. He and his family moved to Dummerston in 1963, where they lived until 2014. Gaylord taught shop class at BUHS beginning in 1970, retiring in 1989. He was an avid skier, serving on the ski patrol at Maple Valley. He loved to fly his airplane out of the “Dummerston International Airport.” He was a member of the Dummerston Congregational Church for over 50 years. Memorial information: There will be a family graveside service at a later time. Donations to the Brattleboro Drop in Center, or Dummerston Meals on Wheels.
• Marion King Schlefer, 91, of Putney. Died Jan. 17, a month short of her 92nd birthday. Wife of Mark P. Schlefer for 70 years. Mother of Jonathan Schlefer of Boston; Ellen and her husband, Michael Bicks, of Durham, N.H.; and Kate Dodge and her husband, Charles, of Putney. Born in Brooklyn Heights, N.Y., her family soon moved to Long Island, where she grew up. She graduated from The Putney School in 1941 and Swarthmore College with honors in 1945. Later, she attended the Harvard Graduate School of Design and received a master's degree from American University. She and her husband moved to Washington D.C. in 1951. Marion conceived all her work, in housing and planning, art and architecture, first of all, as good design. She chaired the Committee of 100 on the Federal City, the oldest planning organization in the District of Columbia. She was a member of the D.C. Board of Commissioners' Planning and Urban Renewal Advisory Council and the Mayor's Committee on the Downtown and received a special tribute at the 50th year celebration of the Metropolitan Washington Planning and Housing Association for distinguished service to the Washington community. She worked as an analyst specializing in planning for the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress. She published studies on industrialized housing, national housing needs, central-city policies and Meridian Hill Park in the District of Columbia. Drawing on her esthetic interests and knowledge, she taught a survey of architecture from Mesopotamia to the Renaissance at Northern Virginia College. She later wrote histories of buildings significant for their architecture for the Historic American Building Survey for deposit in the Library of Congress. She had close ties to Putney. Her mother bought a farmhouse on the Putney-Dummerston Road in 1941, where she and her husband lived for a year after World War II while he taught at Putney School. It was, in part, because of close friends from that special year, that they retired to Putney in 2005. She served on the boards of Morningside Shelter and Putney Family Services. She was a woman who taught us to see the beauty in the things humans create. She was a woman of great kindness and elegance who treasured her family, friends and the beauty of the world around her. Memorial information: No service information provided.
• Millicent “Mimi” Seely, 89, formerly of Schenectedy, N.Y. and Brattleboro. Died Feb. 3 at Grace Cottage Hospital in Townshend. Wife of the late Richard Duane Phelps for 16 years and the late James T. Seely. Mother of Walter Evan Phelps, of Williamsville, Robert Alan Phelps, of Brattleboro, and the late Jonathan Martin Phelps. Brother of the late Geoffrey and William Blodgett. Born in Champaign, Ill., the daughter of the late Harold W. Blodgett and Dorothy Briggs Blodgett, her father was a college professor and first taught at Dartmouth College until accepting a professorship at Union College in Schenectady N.Y., which he kept until his retirement. He was a respected authority and editor of the works of Walt Whitman. She attended public schools in Schenectady at Oneida Junior High, where she was co-president of the student council, and then at Nott Terrace High School, where she graduated in 1942. She enrolled at Oberlin College as an art major and graduated in 1945. At Oberlin, she met Mr. Phelps, whom she married in 1946 and divorced in 1962. They lived in Buffalo, N.Y., Philadelphia, Pittsfield, Mass., Washington, Pa., and Baltimore, before settling in Westminster, Md. in the late 1950s. In 1972, she married Mr. Seely. She raised her three sons in Schenectady, N.Y., working part-time at various positions, then in the early 1970s took a clerical position at the Schenectady County Clerk's office which she held until her retirement in 2000. Following her retirement, she moved to Brattleboro to be near her sons. She was fond of art and music. She enjoyed singing, listening to the radio, and playing the piano. She was an avid reader and library patron, and for many years secretly worked on writing mysteries for her own amusement. During the late 1960s, she enjoyed folk dancing in a monthly get-together. She gave up her car in the mid 1960s and walked or used public transportation for the rest of her life. She was “green” before there was a green movement. Her happiness and well-being were extended to the very end of her life by the staff at Valley Cares in Townshend. Although baptized a Presbyterian, she last attended the Baptist Church in Brattleboro. Her maternal grandfather had been a Baptist minister, and she had fond memories of him. She once described herself as a “yellow dog Democrat,” and was an early fan and supporter of Barack Obama. She kept well informed and she always voted. She will be remembered and missed by everyone who knew her for her smile, intelligence, and sense of humor. Memorial information: A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Feb. 14, at 2 p.m., at Valley Cares, 457 Grafton Rd. in Townshend.
• Tim Stanford, 57, of Saxtons River. Ended his own suffering and died after a long illness on Jan. 30. He deeply believed people had the right to end their own suffering, as we do with our beloved pets. Often referred to as the Bike Wizard, he created and loved his recycled bicycle business. He always had a smile, strove to make people laugh, and was a great hugger. He was caring, generous, a glowing light, one-of-a-kind, loved by many people. Survived by his long-time love and partner, Wendi Zimmerman, daughter, Mossina Owen, and granddaughter, Alayna Owen. Memorial information: Donations to BF Community Bike Project, 24 Canal St., Bellows Falls, VT 05101 or SmileTrain.org, P.O. Box 96231, Washington, D.C. 20090-6231.