John Michael Wesley Bloch, born on September 1, 1938, as the son of Ruth Scanlon Bloch and Leon Bloch, passed away peacefully at home in Montpelier, Vt., on November 6, 2021, having been cared for by his wife, Rebecca Sheppard, for many years. John was a stalwart defender of peace and justice, with an unwavering vision of a society with equal access to education, housing and health care.
Born in New York City and raised in Markham, Va., John came to Vermont in 1958 as a student at Goddard College, where he received his BS in history. He later received an MA in community development from Springfield College. Throughout his life, John was a powerful voice for marginalized communities. Early in his career, he took part in the War on Poverty, first in Washington, D.C., then in Columbus, Ind., before settling in Vermont with his first wife, Susan Dwelle, and their three children to direct one of the new federal government Head Start programs, which provided early childhood education to economically disadvantaged children.
John’s career trajectory was animated by the possibility of societal transformation, and he touched many lives in his diverse work, which included overseeing the Parent Child Center in Barton, Vt., and Head Start programs throughout New England; working at the Center for Community Change in Washington, D.C.; expanding adult education as an administrator and professor with Vermont Community College, New Hampshire College and Springfield College; running the Morrisville Food Co-op; and creating community access to telecommunications in central Vermont through work with Orca Media and EC Fiber. He was endlessly fascinated by digital technology and delighted in and heralded the dawn of the personal computing revolution, quickly realizing the transformative potential of the new tools and finding ways to engage them to amplify the impact of his work and organizing.
As a person who deeply believed in the power of democracy, John was an iconoclast with a brilliant and curious intellect who held power accountable while putting in the hours and homework required to make change happen. John was instrumental in bringing new leadership to the Washington Electric Co-op, securing federal grant funds to build the Doty Memorial Elementary School in Worcester, Vt., and campaigning tirelessly for the Liberty Union party — sometimes running for office himself. He served as a member of numerous local and national boards, including the Worcester and U-32 school boards, the Barre Historical Society/Old Labor Hall board, Hunger Mountain Co-op, and the Rural Coalition, and he was also a union steward with the Vermont State Employees’ Association.
John’s ideal way to relax was to debate politics over good food. He loved to cook, eat and talk about cuisines of the world, from Chinese dim sum to dilly beans and everything in between. He delighted in looking after his blueberry bushes, savouring Pennsylvania peaches and giving advice on how to ripen tomatoes. His appetite for food was equaled by his voracious reading and love for knowledge and history of social justice movements. Pancakes with a side of bacon, shared with his grandchildren, was an activity that equaled or surpassed any of his culinary exploits and brought sheer bliss to all.
Having traversed the 50 states, he also developed a passion for international travel later in life, both to learn about social justice and labor rights initiatives in Argentina, Brazil, China and Mexico, and to visit family in Switzerland, Turkey and Canada.
John’s joy of life is celebrated and he is mourned by many friends and family, especially his loving wife and partner, Rebecca Sheppard, and his five children, Colin Bloch (Burlington), Alexia Bloch and her husband Milind Kandlikar (Vancouver, BC), Jared Bloch and his wife Laila Rodriguez (Geneva, Switzerland), Tobias Sheppard Bloch and his wife Daniela Nanau (Queens, N.Y.), and Abraham Sheppard Bloch (incorrigible citizen of the world). He is also survived by seven grandchildren, Anastacia Esparza Bloch, Isabel Esparza Bloch, Emilia Esparza Bloch, Gabriela Rodriguez Bloch, Mira Kandlikar-Bloch, Samir Kandlikar-Bloch and Olivia Bloch. He was predeceased by his daughter Sacha Tanya Bloch.
Please consider donating to the Barre Labor Hall or the Southern Poverty Law Center. A celebration of John’s life will be held at the Barre Labor Hall on Sunday, November 14, at 1 p.m. Masks and vaccinations are required.
This article appears in The Winter Preview 2021.
John Bloch changed my life. In 1970 he hired me while I was a student at Goddard to work as an organizer at the community action program he headed in Columbus, Indiana. He put up with my youthful zeal even when I organized against the program’s board. After a particularly contentious meeting about the effort, John gave me a hug and said, “you gotta keep up the fight.” We stayed in touch over the years (though not often enough on my part) and John always offered sage advice as a friend and comrade. My last conversation with him was last December. Despite his health issues I could still hear the passion for justice and equity that drew me to Columbus 51 summers ago. Comrade John Bloch – Presente! Larry Kressley (lkressley@verizon.net)
His obituary is a compendium of good deeds. But beyond that, how do I know that John Bloch was a good person? Because he was one of the few lifelong friends of my dear departed neighbor, artist Robert M. Fisher, who himself was one of the most decent, most (small d) democratic, and most fiercely uncompromising persons that I have ever met. Condolences from my family to Mr. Bloch’s…
David Harp, Middlesex
I met John while serving with him on ECFiber’s Governing Board, and loved the practical wisdom and integrity he brought. John was an early ECFiber member, and I loved his courage and clear-eyed wisdom as he made vocal his concerns about the loss of transparency and of mission as the financing situation changed away from community support and toward insitutional money and control.
I also served with John on the ORCA Media board, where his vision of the importance of community access to cable media helped shape the company and its accessibility, which continues today. John returned briefly in an Emeritus position as Broadband liaison, until his health condition interfered.
John was one of the good guys: brave, funny, true to himself, and always committed to making the world better. His stories of his exploits with a young Bernie probably shouldn’t be repeated here, but as can be deduced from his obituary, John did a lot and therefore knew an awful lot of people, and certainly could tell a story. We could disagree as friends, and if there is one trait all too rare today, it may be that one. May his passion and example continue to shine.