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Martin Tierney FEBRUARY 24, 1941DECEMBER 23, 2020 BURLINGTON, VT.
Martin Tierney was a restoration architect whose skills shaped towns and villages all across Vermont. For 43 years he worked on numerous projects and buildings, including the Richmond Round Church and Shelburne Farms. But his work, which lives on, is only a facet of who Martin was. His greater legacy is the impact he had on people. As family and friends from Vermont and around the world said goodbye to him, they described Martin as a teacher, Renaissance man (which would have made him chuckle), gentleman, beloved friend and, above all, kind soul who knew how to listen and make people smile. He was a graceful, charming and compassionate man. So many expressed that Martin was a huge influence on their lives. Martin was born in Greenwich Village on February 24, 1941, into an eccentric, bohemian family. Like his relatives, he eschewed the ordinary and pursued adventure. Although he wasn’t the best of students, his teachers loved him. He attended three different colleges, eventually studying architecture and earning his master’s degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. In 1963, he married Johanna Crockwell and together they had two beloved children, Megan and Cole. After Martin and Johanna divorced, Martin met his wife and soul mate Linda Tierney. Much to everyone’s surprise, Linda and Johanna became close friends, uniting the family. Throughout the more than four decades they spent together, Martin and Linda basked in the love of their family and each other. Even while Martin was working, their life was full of art, exploration and motion. On a whim, in the 1980s Martin and Linda bought a house in Vieques, Puerto Rico, where they had an amazing second life. They spent the last 20 years living in Italy as much as they could (being Italophiles), dancing the tango, learning Italian and gleaning the most out of life. Martin’s love of music fed his soul, and he sang with music groups and friends and played his guitar. He was
a devotee of fly-fishing. He played squash — competitively and gentlemanly — for decades with a group of beloved buddies. He loved opera and classical music as much as he loved watching the Friday Night Fights. He found the time in his busy life to get a black belt in Shotokan karate, practicing his kicks around the house, much to Linda’s dismay. In recent years, he spent time writing short stories, working on a memoir, sketching and painting watercolors. Countless Vermont communities have benefited from Martin’s passion for bringing beautiful historic buildings back to life. He restored the buildings at Shelburne Farms, where he lovingly worked for 17 years; the Elley-Long Music Center in Colchester; the Richmond Round Church; and the Warner Block on Church Street and Union Station in Burlington, to name just a few projects. He also worked on many town plans and served as chair of the Vermont Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and as a board member of Preservation Trust of Vermont. He deeply loved his community and his home on Burlington’s Lakeview Terrace. In 2018, when Martin was 77, a DNA test revealed he was part of a family he never knew about, so the list of his survivors is long: Martin leaves his wife, Linda; daughter Megan TierneyWard, her husband Bill Ward and two granddaughters Kyla and Taylor; son Cole Tierney and his wife Lori Tierney; sister-in-law Pam Graham and her husband Ted Panicucci; niece Lindsay Francescutti, her husband Tony and their two children Rae and Sy; niece Ali and her daughter Laska; sisterin Law Nancy Stalnaker, her husband Howard and their two children Jake and David; brother-in-law Jerry
Rosen, his wife Victoria and their son Alex; sister-inlaw Anne Bergeron, her daughter Aleck Gues, Aleck’s husband Patrick Juliani and their children Leonardo, Milo, and Ulysses, all of Montréal; stepsister Ingrid Waldren and her husband Rene; former sister-in-law Hanne Tierney; and the entire extended Grazzini family in Italy. Martin also leaves his four newly discovered sisters Cathey Gilbert Dennis, Gerri Russo, Joann Zemp and Jan Grossman and their wonderful families — an unexpected and delightful surprise that gave Martin’s life new dimension, delight and even more love. Martin is predeceased by his mother Alice West, his father Myles Tierney, his bigger-than-life brother Myles Tierney, his niece Loren Tierney and his nephew Myles Tierney and his newly discovered biological father Wendell Gilbert. Martin’s story wouldn’t be complete without including the fact that he was a recovering alcoholic for 40 years. Extremely active in his cherished AA community, he took strength and solace in helping others and being helped to live a life “second to none,” as he was fond of saying. He leaves behind his second family: his AA family. Martin’s life was one of excitement, hard work, contentment, philosophy, spirituality, love and, above all, joy. We are immensely grateful to the staff at the McClure Miller Respite House, where Martin received expert, compassionate care and comfort. He passed away swiftly and peacefully of complications from a blood disorder that was diagnosed in March. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the newly created Martin Tierney Fund at Shelburne Farms, established to honor and continue the work that was dearest to Martin’s heart. A memorial service will be held post-pandemic. One of Martin’s favorite poems, Raymond Carver’s “Late Fragment,” sums up his life. And did you get what You wanted from this life, even so? I did. And what did you want? To call myself beloved, to feel myself beloved on the earth.
Jeffrey Lee Minor
Bacon of Colchester; and his brother Glenn Minor and his wife, Amy, of Westford. He is also survived by his nieces and nephews Aaron Minor and his wife, Lisa, of Fairfax, whom Jeff enjoyed watching carry on his legacy; Kellie Minor and Charles Rowse of Fairfax; Nick Bacon and Kristiana Boucher of Williston; Addison and Anna Minor of Westford; and Kris Irwin and his wife, Xem, of Winooski; as well as his great nieces and nephews Noah, Skylar, Avery, Nolan, Kira and Kora; and many uncles, aunts, cousins and friends. He was predeceased by his brother Alan Minor in 1998; Alan’s wife, Annette, in 2010;
and Diane’s husband, Mike Bacon, in 2011. Jeff treated all of his employees and customers as extended family. He was the nucleus of his family; he gave more than he ever asked of anybody. He would provide for his family, his community and friends. If he saw a need, he tried to fill it. Special thanks is given to his cousin and special friend Brion Houston and his cousin Suzy Goulette, his friend Scott Beckwith, and all of his doctors and caregivers at the University of Vermont and Boston for all the care they gave him during his illness. In lieu of flowers, memorials in Jeff’s name may be made to the UVM Cancer Center for Children. Visiting hours were held on Wednesday, December 30, 2020, from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Minor Funeral Home in Milton. A graveside service was held on Thursday, December 31, 2020, at 1 p.m. at St. Luke’s Cemetery in Fairfax. For those who wish, online condolences may be made at minorfh.com.
Johnson State College as a drama major. In high school, Tabitha performed in many plays and traveled to Germany and Austria as part of her German class. She was always a lover of animals and traveled the states as part of humanitarian efforts. She leaves behind her mother, Tammy Sweeney; father, Gary Chagnon; stepmother, Vicki Billings; and stepfather, Wayne Farr; as well as her daughter, Luna Marie Sweeney-Castro; her sister Samantha Anderson and brother-in-law, Scott Anderson; her sister Kaleigh Benoit and Kaleigh’s spouse, Scott Bapp; her grandmother, Susan Tardie; her great uncle, Thomas Jones, and
his spouse, Linda Fenton; her uncles Ken Sweeney and Chad Chagnon; her aunt, Krystal Chagnon; and her cousins, James Sylvester, Mariah Sylvester and Scott Stisi. She leaves behind many other cousins and important friends who spent a lifetime building memories together. She leaves her two beloved dogs, Daisy and Hercules. Tabitha is predeceased by her stepmother, Theresa Benoit; uncle Sean Chagnon; grandfather Fred Tardie; and great aunts, Deb Shortsleeves and Rena Jones. Services and inurnment will be private and at the convenience of family in the spring or summer of 2021. In lieu of flowers, memorial contribution’s in Tabitha’s memory may be made to benefit her toddler daughter, Luna, and her future care and education. These contributions can be made in Luna’s name, Luna Castro-Sweeney, to Mascoma Bank, P.O. Box 14, 431 Pine St., Suite 115, Burlington, VT 05401. The family also invites you to share your memories and condolences by visiting awrfh.com.
NOVEMBER 4, 1959DECEMBER 25, 2020 FAIRFAX, VT. Jeffrey Lee Minor, 61, died peacefully early Christmas morning, December 25, 2020, at his home with loving family by his side following a battle with glioblastoma. Jeff was born on November 4, 1959, in Burlington, the son of Lee and Louise (Potvin) Minor. A lifelong resident of Fairfax, Jeff graduated from BFA Fairfax in 1977. Before graduating, he bought the local country store, now known as Minor’s Country Store. Jeff loved friends and families, playing cards, organizing large family functions, and his trips to Maine, Montréal and the Cape. In later years, he got more into traveling. His favorite time of the year was Christmas, especially with his nieces and nephews. His one frivolous purchase was in buying his convertible Mustang and cruising. He is survived by his parents, Lee and Louise Minor, of Fairfax; his sister Diane
Tabitha Elizabeth Sweeney
NOVEMBER 2, 1994DECEMBER 21, 2020 COLCHESTER, VT. Tabitha Elizabeth Sweeney passed away at age 26 on Monday, December 21, 2020, at her home in Colchester, Vt. Tabitha was born in Burlington on November 2, 1994, to Tammy Sweeney and Gary Chagnon. Tabitha was a vibrant young woman filled with love and a thirst for life and experiences. She brought joy to all those around her and was a natural-born prankster with a laugh that will never be forgotten. Tabitha loved to travel and take her daughter on adventures. Tabby loved to plan parties and events for friends and family and was always the light of any event she attended. She lavished her daughter with love and enjoyed nothing more than quality time with her. Tabitha traveled abroad as an au pair in Italy, where she honed her snowboarding skills in the Alps. She was a lover of the arts and attended
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