Richard Swenson Woods died at home with his wife, Alice, and sister Laurie by his side, from complications arising from leiomyosarcoma. Rick was born in Glen Ridge, N.J. His family lived in Montclair, N.J., at the time but moved to Bernardsville, N.J., when he was 2.
Rick grew up enjoying many family activities, such as skiing at Mad River Glen, camping and hiking trips, including the Grand Canyon when he was a teenager. He attended Bernards High School, graduating in 1978. He then spent two months in a small village in Switzerland as part of an exchange program. He took a gap year, going through the Dynamy internship program to try out work in several fields such as theater stage building. After that, he attended Saint Lawrence University in Canton, N.Y., for three semesters, leaving to travel west and attend UC Santa Cruz. He traveled back and forth across the country for several years, finally settling in Burlington to attend the University of Vermont. He graduated from UVM with a degree in sociology in 1985.
Once he settled in Burlington, Rick began working as a carpenter, building and renovating houses. He also got involved in Progressive political causes. He worked for Bernie Sanders during his early campaigns. It was volunteering at the Peace & Justice Center and Store on Church Street where he met Alice Christian, and they became good friends.
In the early ’90s, Rick earned a teaching degree from Saint Michael’s College and taught social studies in Vergennes, Hinesburg and Bristol. He married Janet Sluzenski in 1991, and they divorced in April 1993.
While helping build a house, Rick cut off three fingers in a table saw accident in August 1993. He had many surgeries and physical therapy to rehab his left hand. The time off from teaching left him with time on his hands (so to speak), and he found joy as a DJ at University of Vermont’s WRUV radio station with a jazz-oriented show called “Giant Steps.”
Rick started working for Seven Days newspaper in August 1995, and the first paper rolled off the presses in September of that year. He moved from Burlington to Colchester at the end of 1997, but he ran 17 miles of the half Vermont City Marathon in May 1998 (he just kept going) and the Green Mountain Half Marathon in October 1998.
When he turned 40 in 2000, he left for an extended Hawaiian trip. He returned to fill the new role of general manager at Seven Days, leaving again in 2009. Rick and Alice were married twice in 2007, first eloping on Kauai, Hawaii, and then having a celebration with family on a boat in Shelburne Bay.
Rick became copublisher of VTDigger (Vermont Journalism Trust) in 2013 until 2015, helping the fledgling organization take off. He went back to Seven Days as HR manager for two years, until 2017.
Softly retiring from paid work, he worked with extreme dedication for the Discover Jazz Festival in the role of artist transportation, where he was honored to drive many jazz greats and up-and-comers. This work was cut short by the pandemic in 2020. He was on the board of Vermont Refugee Assistance for many years. He also was a valued hospice volunteer with UVM Home Health & Hospice starting in 2018 until he was limited by his own health issues. He was diagnosed with leiomyosarcoma in November 2022.
Ricked loved and was loved by many people, many dogs and one cat.
Rick leaves his beloved wife of 19 years, Alice Christian, and his husky Millie; his father, Jack Woods of New Jersey; siblings, Jay Woods of Florida, Lauren (Jim) Schreiner of Wisconsin and Linda Harris of New Jersey; nieces Lyndsey Woods, Kristin Schreiner, and Leigh Attinello (Anthony and their children, Ava and Ethan); and nephews Lucas Woods, Kevin Schreiner and Michael Harris (Katie). He was predeceased by his mother, Suzanne Swenson Woods. He also leaves his aunts, Joan McIlwain and Janice Woods; and 10 very close cousins, their spouses and their children.
He leaves a large family of in-laws: Alice’s siblings, Steve Christian and Barb Bowen of New York, Bill Christian and Sue Andrews of Vermont; Pat Christian and Dean Pavlakis of New York, Nancy Christian of New Hampshire, Amy Christian and Duncan Hilchey of New Hampshire; and Marge and Dana Goudreault of New Hampshire; nieces Elizabeth Christian (Thomas Stahlbuhk and their children, Robert and Charlotte), Jessica Goudreault, and Jill Bowen-Christian; nephews Peter Pavlakis (Minni Kahlon and their daughter, Laila), Alex Pavlakis (Ava Nourbaran and their daughter, Lina), Dave Goudreault (Ashley Lovell), Chris Goudreault (and son Max), Jon Christian (Bettina Makalintal), Matthew Christian, and Jack Hilchey. He was predeceased by his nephew Tom Hilchey.
In Rick’s memory, donations may be made to the Green Mountain Club, 4711 Waterbury-Stowe Rd., Waterbury Center, VT 05677, steward of the Long Trail, of which he hiked a good portion. (greenmountainclub.org/donate-to-green-mountain-club-2); or to UVM Health Home Health & Hospice, whose staff gave him compassionate care, with special thanks to his nurse Lila, 1110 Prim Rd., Colchester, VT 05446 (uvmhealth.org/give-back/give-to-uvm-health/give-to-home-health-hospice).
All who knew and loved Rick are invited to a “Remembering Rick” event on June 6, 2026, 1 p.m., at the Unitarian Universalist Society at the top of Church Street in Burlington, Vt.
Rick wrote his own obituary that he wished to have published after his death:
Many years ago, I asked my dad, who I thought was old enough and had enough life experience to offer some valid perspective and wisdom, what is the secret to a good life? His response was quick and succinct: “Try hard and get lucky.” Wise man.
I have been blessed with an amazingly strong, loving and always supportive family, a model of how family can and should be. More than anything else in my life, they helped define who I became. I’ve enjoyed a plethora of strong, solid friendships, some going back 50 years, a handful of brothers and sisters beyond my birth family (you know who you are). And I was lucky to find Alice, with her decades of strength and loving partnership. I really can’t say enough about how much I have appreciated the years of her love and support.
I’ve had good sense in reading and trusting people who have ended up proving themselves worthy of my trust. I’ve also been blessed with a strong sense of self, conviction in my beliefs and a fierce loyalty to the ones I care about.
I’ve had the opportunity to live in a variety of places, forging strong relationships that remain vital and strong to this day and being able to call Vermont, a most special place, my home for over four decades. I’ve also had the opportunity to have many different life experiences: working with goats, building houses, teaching social studies to middle and high schoolers, living in a treehouse, traveling to all 50 states, doing construction work in Nicaragua, backpacking and camping in the mountains from California to Maine, and traveling to a handful of other countries.
And I was lucky to have the opportunity to work for many years for and with many outstanding people at Seven Days newspaper, many of whom remain dear friends.
My happy places were all outside: in the woods, up in the mountains, swimming with family at the Jersey Shore, skiing, hiking, camping, sitting by the firepit on a warm summer evening, walking my dog along a wooded trail, lying in my hammock on the ocean’s edge of the Maine coast. And where would I be without my lifelong love of music? Playing it at home or on the air as a DJ, seeing it performed live, enjoying being an avid and inveterate listener? It has fed me in so many ways, helped me through so many ups and downs in my life.
I’ve also had a touch of the unlucky. At 62 I was diagnosed with a particularly virulent strain of cancer. I dealt with multiple surgeries, chemo regimens, doctor appointments, hospital stays, you name it, for the next three years. Not a particularly easy time. But I received excellent medical care and was able to go out in my own home, with my family by my side.
Regrets? Yeah, I’ve had a few. I lost my first marriage, to a very good woman, through my own impatience and impetuousness. I had a tendency, both good and bad, to say whatever was on my mind, and that made for a few uncomfortable and challenging situations, both at work and with my family, especially in my teenage years. And I strongly regret not following my passion for backpacking and camping more than I did, something that fed my soul in so many ways for so many years.
I want to thank my family for always being there for me in so, so many ways, especially in these last few years. Amazing love and commitment! I want to thank Alice for decades of companionship, love and support. You are the rock, steady and strong, that has helped me through these last few years (and many before that!). I’d truly have been lost without you. I want to thank my dear friends, too many to name but you know who you are, and you know your special place in my heart. And finally, I want to thank all the good folks at UVM Medical Center, my surgeon, my oncologists, my urologist, the palliative care and hospice workers, and, especially, the nurses who are always on the forefront of care. Outstanding!
I’ve wondered how to say goodbye, not an easy thing to do to the ones I love, but I’ll settle for a quote from a Stephen Stills song about a newly lost friend:
One morning I woke up and knew you were really gone.
A new day, a new way, and new eyes to see the dawn.
Go your way, I’ll go mine, and carry on.
Rejoice, rejoice, we have no choice but to carry on.