Mulunesh Lulit Kidane, 26, died unexpectedly at her home in Lowell on Thursday, August 20, 2020. Mulu was born in Berlin, VT. She lived in Manchester where she attended the Southshire Day School. She spent two years living in Tucson, AZ where she attended the Sam Hughes School. She completed her high school education homeschooling while attending North Star - Self Directed Learning for Teens in Hadley, MA. Although not a professional performer like her father, Mulu inherited his talent for entertaining with a fantastic sense of humor. We all loved it when she danced. She had an amazing ear and could listen to a song once and sing back the lyrics. She loved poetry and narrative. While at the Southshire school in first grade she recited word for word scenes from A Midsummer Night's Dream, the school's dramatic production that year. She had a gift for writing and wordplay. Mulu was a foodie through and through. She never worked in a professional kitchen, however she studied with the great chefs on YouTube and we all ate well as a result. When she started watching Brad Leone's It's Alive, she delved into the world of fermented food, with stoneware crocks full of kimchi and her refrigerator was full of her experiments, much to her husband's consternation (kimchi stinks!). She fantasized about growing turmeric and ginger to add to her ferments. Just the other week she was delighted because she had a new source of black garlic. As a bi-racial child growing up in Vermont, Mulu had a first-hand experience with racial prejudice. Those life experiences, among others, showed her the importance of compassion and fairness and created in her a deep sense of social justice. She believed that everyone has the basic human right to shelter, food, clean water and health care. Her focus was on food, ministering to people who are currently in need. For eight years, she volunteered for the Christ Church Full Ladle Community Lunch. She spent Tuesday afternoons in the kitchen cooking lasagna or three cheese macaroni or chicken pot pie and the list goes on. On Wednesdays she worked with the Full Ladle crew to get the meal ready: spicing up soups, arranging deserts and helping with the setup. What she loved even more than the cooking was interacting with everyone who came to the luncheon. She knew everyone's name, their story and took the time to speak with them. She offered laughter, hope and love. Mulu's love and compassion extended beyond the two-legged in her community to the four-legged as well. Her beloved dog, Pickle Pie, predeceased her. Munchkin, her big red Pitbull, was her rock. He always viewed himself as a puppy and a lapdog and despite his significant size would manage to sit on her lap. Last year she branched out to raising pigs whom she spoiled mercilessly, scratching their backs until they fell over with joy. She didn't just spoil her own pets, she was Auntie Mulu to all the pets of her friends and family, bringing them presents, gushing over their photos, taking them on walks, and so much more. She also rescued injured animals. There were many shoe box emergency rooms. Mulu's life was transformed when she met and married Ken. They started to travel together. They had dreams of eventually going to Hawaii. Last winter, they traveled to Fort Myers, FL and to Las Vegas to visit with Mulu's sister and brother-in-law. Here in Vermont, they enjoyed taking the boat out and going fishing together, raising their pigs, and spending time with their family. Mulu loved Ken dearly and would beam and refer to him as "my husband" with pride. Mulu and Ken bought the Lowell General Store at the beginning of August. She was happy to be living in a small town where she felt so welcomed and looked forward to doing what she did so well: feeding her new community. She had visions of a greenhouse, hoop houses, berry bushes, and raised beds in their sunny backyard where she would grow food that she could use in her culinary creations to provide take-out meals for the store. Mulu is survived by her husband, Ken Charbonneau of Lowell; her step-daughter Katie Ballard and her husband Dwayne and their three children Zoey, Peyton and Noah; her mother, Elizabeth Parker of Montpelier; her father Kiflu Kidane and his wife Molly, and her brothers Kasu and Berhan of New London, NH; her brother Jeff Parker and his partner Lila Brooke of Northfield; his sister Laura Baker and her husband Peter of Montpelier; her sister, Becca Lang and her husband Rob and their daughter Nadine of Ridgway, CO; her uncle Malcolm Parker and his wife Jaqui of Lunenburg, MA and her beloved dog, Munchkin. Mulu's funeral will be Saturday, August 29th at 11 AM in the Memorial Garden at Christ Church, 64 State Street, Montpelier at which time her ashes will be interred. Due to COVID-19 space restrictions, the service is family-only. However, the service will be streamed. A Facebook Event Page Celebrating Mulu's Life – Mulunesh Lulit Kidane will have the link to the live feed and information about the service / reception. If you have difficulty finding the Event Page please go to Mulu's or Ken's Facebook page or reach out to a family member to get help getting the link. You may also go to www.guareandsons.com. At noon following the funeral there will be a reception for her friends and family at the New Shelter in Hubbard Park in Montpelier. Take Winter Street to enter the Park. Masks are required, a contact tracing list will be created, and we encourage people to bring their own water bottle. In case of inclement weather, there is space under the pavilion and a canopy, but bring an umbrella, just in case. In lieu of flowers, in memory of Mulu, please consider creating the habit of using your time, talent and treasure to connect with your community to help create food security for all. Please consider donating to the Full Ladle Community Lunch, Christ Church, PO Box 394, Montpelier, VT 05601 or to the National Eating Disorder Association, www.nationaleatingdisorders.org.