Kenneth Feld, 78, of East Montpelier, died on February 4, 2022 at Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin. Known and loved by many, Ken's gentle New York-accented voice was a weekly feature on the airwaves of Central Vermont Community Radio (WGDR), where his eclectic show, The Lost Highway, was broadcast every Tuesday afternoon. Music was Ken's passion and he had an encyclopaedic knowledge of it, especially jazz. His wide-ranging record collection spanned more than 10,000 LPs. While he loved the classics, he was an adventurous listener who never stopped getting excited about new artists, encouraging family and friends to 'check them out'– his latest discoveries included Nils Frahm and Robert Earl Keen. Ken was born in The Bronx, N.Y. on May 19, 1943 to Benjamin and Alice (Zanger) Feld. Ken grew up in the neighborhoods of Parkchester and Riverdale and then in the Long Island town of North Bellmore, where he attended Wellington C. Mepham High School and developed an interest in jazz and poetry. At the University of Michigan, he earned his BA in English and began a lifelong affiliation with the university's football and basketball teams. After graduation he worked in the kitchens of merchant ships and on banana boats in Central America, seeing the world before returning to New York. At an initiation for new hires at the city welfare department he met Patricia Carton, a young Philadelphian who'd hoped to pursue an acting career but was too nervous to go to auditions. Both just 21, they bonded over a shared appreciation of folk music and fell in love, marrying in 1968. Ken wasn't cut out for social work – he stayed up all night worrying about his clients – so he retrained as an English teacher. In 1971, hungry for a garden and a simpler life in the country, Ken convinced an initially reluctant Trish to leave the Upper West Side for Vermont, which he remembered fondly from family vacations. The couple settled in a converted schoolhouse in South Duxbury, near Harwood Union High School where Ken got a teaching job. The friendships Ken and Trish made there formed the basis of a tight-knit family whose companionship carried on through their whole lives. Their daughter Kate arrived in 1973 followed by Benjamin in 1976. Ken and Trish were part of the wave of back-to-the-landers whose transitions to Vermont living were not always smooth. In Duxbury, there were some well-meaning attempts at animal husbandry, including the unfortunate purchase of five male ducks and one short-lived female, leading irate neighbours from as far away as Moretown to phone them up to come get their ducks. In 1978, Trish opened a restaurant, Soup's On!, on Foundry Street in Waterbury, and the family moved into town. Ken eventually left teaching to join her in the kitchen. The couple didn't make any money during their eight years in the restaurant business but, as Ken saw it, they served wonderful food, had good times and made a lot of friends along the way. After the restaurant was sold, Ken worked for the State of Vermont – first in the Travel Division, where he was proud of enlisting jazz singer Margaret Whiting to promote tourism by reprising her 1945 hit 'Moonlight in Vermont' – and then as a purchasing agent. Ken had many interests outside work and relished being part of community life; over the years he organized a Charlie Chaplin film series, started the downtown revitalisation festival Waterbury Alive!, volunteered at Vermont Foodbank and covered meetings as a stringer for the Times Argus, among other projects. Ken had a natural affinity for relaxation and loved sunning himself on a beach, admiring the view from his deck, watching Rangers or Knicks games, and lying on the couch reading a book or The New Yorker and playing records. A tennis player into his seventies, he was a fit and active man whose black hair and tanned skin made him appear far younger than his years (much to the annoyance of Trish.) He really enjoyed people and they responded to his amiable, easygoing nature and lack of ego. In 2005, Trish was diagnosed with a brain tumor, and Ken lovingly cared for her until her death in 2007. Following his retirement, Ken worked as an assistant during the legislative session at the Vermont Statehouse, and soon became smitten with one of his co-workers, Barbara Leber. She wasn't sure at first, but after she broke her wrist and he visited with movies and chicken soup, his consideration made him a serious prospect. Ken and Barbara married in 2012 and spent many happy years living together in East Montpelier, sharing travels to Cuba, Paris, Mexico and Peaks Island, Maine. Through Barbara, an artist and theatremaker with Bread and Puppet Theater, Ken connected with a new community of friends who further enriched his life. After his diagnosis with multiple myeloma Ken endured years of cancer treatment with unflinching good grace – he greatly appreciated the care he received at Central Vermont Medical Center, especially the dedicated work of Dr. David Ospina and staff at Hematology & Oncology. Ken died following a cardiac arrest at the hospital, with his beloved family around him. His son played him out with a favorite Horace Silver track. He was predeceased by his brother, Ron Feld of Lakewood, N.J., and his first wife, Patricia Feld. He is survived by his wife, Barbara Leber; daughter Kate Feld, of Manchester, UK; son Benjamin Feld and daughter-in-law Danielle Feld of Montpelier; six grandchildren: Rebecca, Molly, Bella, Rhys, Sebastian and Anya; and many others. Memorial contributions may be sent to Central Vermont Community Radio, 123 Pitkin Road, Plainfield VT 05667, or at wgdr.org/donate. Funeral announcement- East Montpelier, VT There will be a Celebration of Ken Feld's Life Saturday August 6, 2022, 1 p.m. at the Doty Cemetery, East Montpelier with jazz music and remembrances. Then a Dixieland style parade to the Parish Hall at the Old Meeting House for light refreshments and conversation.