Wayne Thomas Hamilton, 75, of East Montpelier, Vermont passed away unexpectedly at his home on

Saturday, March 30, 2024.

He was born on September 29, 1948, the son of Douglas and Vera (Cline) Hamilton on a small family

farm in Wappingers Falls, NY.

After graduating from Roy C. Ketcham High School, he received a Bachelor's degree in Social

Studies/Secondary Education from SUNY New Paltz. After a brief teaching career and military service in

the New York Army National Guard, he attended SUNY Albany and received a Master's degree in

Accounting.

On August 15, 1981, Wayne married his partner-in-adventures, Rachel Senechal, on the rocky coastline

of Maine.

Not many know that Wayne was a dairy farmer before realizing that administration was more suited for

him. He began his accounting work as controller at the Maine State Housing authority. After several

years he moved to Vermont to become controller at the Vermont State College System. In 1995 he was

appointed Dean of Administration at Lyndon State College (now Vermont State University-Lyndon) where

he served until his retirement in 2013. In 2019 Wayne received the Faculty and Staff Recognition Award

from the Lyndon Alumni council, to honor his impact on the lives of alumni.

Wayne loved his family, and showed his love through hard work. Beyond his own homestead, Wayne

made time to work on his daughter's farm in Maine and his son's property in Middlesex. He spent his last

day on earth boiling maple syrup at home with Rachel and his son, Tom.

Whether playing the links at the Barre Country Club, walking his dog, Knickers, or cross-country skiing,

Wayne would often be found outdoors. Vacations were spent cycling in Vermont and beyond, including

multi-state trips in the US and Canada. He was a certified Master Gardener and during the pandemic,

Wayne began raising chickens at his home.

Wayne served in a variety of volunteer and community-service positions. He served on the boards of the

Lyndon State College Foundation, Plainfield Health Center and Lyndon Rescue Inc. He was also a

volunteer income tax preparer for low-income and elderly taxpayers with Capstone, Inc. Above all of his

hobbies and interests, Wayne was so proud of his work with Youth First Mentoring. Recently, Wayne

shared that his mentee declared "We're really good friends". This melted his heart.

Wayne is survived by his wife, Rachel Y. Senechal of East Montpelier; his children, Thomas Anthony

Hamilton of Middlesex, VT, his daughter Hannah Rose Hamilton and son in law James C. Buckle of Unity,

ME; his siblings, Heidi Dohrenwend and husband Robert of Wappingers Falls, NY and Barry Hamilton and

his wife Susan of Whitsett, NC; and his spirited mother-in-law, Marie J. Senechal of Naples, FL.

A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, April 10th at 11:00 am, at the Old Meeting House of East

Montpelier.

Memorial Tributes may be made to Youth First Mentoring at 73 Main St, Suite 29, Montpelier, VT, or to

the Vermont State University Senechal-Hamilton Family Scholarship Fund, which provides

first-generation college student scholarships. Scholarship Fund donations may be made out to Vermont

State University and addressed as follows: The Senechal-Hamilton Family Scholarship Fund, Vermont State University, P.O. Box 919, Lyndonville, VT, 05851.

His family would like to thank the East Montpelier Fire Department first responders, especially Jon

Boucher, and also their neighbors Greg and Paula Light.

Those wishing to express online condolences may do so at www.guareandsons.com.