Brian
Thomas “Tom” Sweet passed away peacefully at home on December 8,
2024, surrounded by family. He was born on January 12, 1941, in
Waterbury Center, Vt., the son of Lynwood (Jack) Sweet and (Mary)
Alice Minott Sweet.
Tom
was a hard worker, helping on his uncle’s farm and later walking
three miles daily to his father’s dairy farm at the base of Mount
Hunger. He graduated from Waterbury High School in 1959 and attended
the University of Vermont, transferring to the University of Maine at
Orono to complete a degree in forestry and graduating in 1963.
Tom
had a 60-year career as a forester, employed by the U.S. Forest
Service in Vermont, Minnesota and Michigan. In 1979 Tom became the
forester for New England Land Associates, dba Ward Lumber Company,
based in Waterbury, Vt. During that time, he began forestry
consulting for private landowners, retiring in 2023. He was fortunate
that his profession was also his avocation; he often said there was
never a bad day in the woods. His summer delight of the past 44 years
was making hay on the family farm (square bales), mainly for people
who owned horses, interspersed with gardening and canoe trips.
In
1960, Tom met the love of his life, Grace Lamson Waldo, marrying on
August 15, 1964. Together they raised three sons — Matthew, Philip
(Rebecca Roebuck) and Daniel (Andrea Shedd) — and delighted in
their grandchildren, Phoebe, Finn, Camille and Chase.
The
family thanks the Central Vermont Home Health & Hospice staff for
their compassionate care.
Memorial
contributions for Harwood students pursuing further education in
agricultural or natural resource studies can be made to the Brian
Thomas Sweet Scholarship Fund, PO Box 156, Waterbury Center, VT
05677.
The
family is assisted by Perkins Parker Funeral Home. A celebration of
life will be held on May 24, 2025, with details to follow.
This article appears in Dec 4-10, 2024.