Marcel Beaudin sailed off into the Lake Champlain sunset on Friday,
March 29, 2024, passing away at the age of 95 years and 11
days.
Born in Barre, Vt., in 1929, Marcel was the eldest
of the four children of Armand Beaudin, a stonecutter, and Eva
(LeFevre) Beaudin, a seamstress, both of whom were from the
Sherbrooke area of Québec. Marcel graduated from Spaulding High
School, where he demonstrated his aptitude for design by working as a
junior draftsman for a monument fabricator.
After high
school, Marcel moved to New York City with the intent of enrolling in
college and was initially employed as a junior designer of tombstones
and mausoleums. Planning to be a sculptor, he eventually enrolled at
Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, inspired to study architecture following
a chance encounter with the Swiss French architect and designer Le
Corbusier.
Marcel married his first wife, Vera, in 1948,
and in 1957 he built a home of his design on Shelburne Point, where
they raised their five children, until moving to Burlington in
1970.
Marcel began his private architectural practice,
Beaudin and Associates, in Burlington in the late 1950s and practiced
for almost 70 years. Among Marcel’s score of architectural projects
were residences, public buildings and places of worship. Burlington
is home to many of these, including the iconic Community Boathouse.
He was a dedicated planning commission member, helping shape the
development and landscape of Burlington and its waterfront. Marcel
attempted to retire at age 90, in 2019, actively consulting in the
years that followed.
In addition to his work, Marcel’s
passion was sailing. He sailed both competitively and for pleasure on
Lake Champlain and enjoyed regular excursions to the Bahamas and
beyond, joined by his wife, Ruth, and friends old and new.
Sailboat
racing became a family mission, and he competed with his close
friends and his sons regularly on both Lake Champlain and in regattas
from Newport to Key West. His proudest competitive sailing
achievement was setting the record for the most victories in the Lake
Champlain Yacht Club Ladies Cup Race, with a total of six wins,
always with at least one of his sons on board. He was particularly
proud of the wins in 2010 and 2017, when the three-generation crew
included his grandsons.
Marcel’s life project was the
cofounding, in 1994, of the Burlington Community Sailing Center.
Originally housed in Burlington’s abandoned Moran Plant, the
resource truly came to life with the design and construction of the
new sailing center, which was completed in 2018. Though Marcel
designed the building, he would insist on acknowledging that it was a
team effort that included longtime colleagues who shared his vision
and commitment to giving everyone, regardless of income, a chance to
enjoy the lake through sailing. His dream for this vital local
institution now carries his passion for sailing to future
generations.
Marcel took on other good works because they
“needed doing.” The most remarkable and recent example is acting
as consulting architect for the Lost Mural Project, saving a hidden
artwork from destruction. His contributions to engineering the moving
and installation of the restored mural in the lobby of Burlington’s
Ohavi Zedek Synagogue has facilitated yet another Vermont
landmark.
Marcel is predeceased by his first wife and
mother to his four children, Vera Beaudin Saeedpour; his second wife,
Ruth (Binch) Beaudin; his son Marc Beaudin; and his brother Conrad
Beaudin.
Marcel is survived by his children Paul Beaudin
(Wendy), Rebecca Beaudin (Christopher Carlson), Adam Beaudin and Jeb
Beaudin; grandchildren, Jonah and Aaron Beaudin; and stepchildren,
Sheryl Shaker (Ted), and their children, Molly, Grace and Will, and
Beth Alpert and children Sam (Emily) and Rebecca. He is also survived
by his sister, Suzanne Beaudin, and his brother Roger Beaudin
(Jeannie Boudah).
A celebration of Marcel’s long,
accomplished life will be held in August at the Community Sailing
Center. In lieu of flowers, donations in Marcel’s name can be sent
to the Community Sailing Center or to Howard Center’s Westview House, in honor of Marcel’s late son, Marc.
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This article appears in The Money & Retirement Issue 2024.
Marcel certainly was an impressive man accomplishing many impressive projects. Baruch Dayan HaEmet.
I am lucky to have known Marcel as a friend and colleague. My favorite project of my construction career was the Community Boathouse. Marcel and I submitted a design-build proposal for the empty hull of a city-owned barge, and to our surprise and delight, we were selected for the project. Marcel figured out how to create a beautiful community space from a derelict barge. His genius forever blesses Burlington and beyond.
I built many Marcel-designed projects, including four custom-designed homes in Shelburne, Stowe, and Barton, Vermont. Every project was a challenge, and Marcel provided the aesthetic, guidance, and goodwill to realize his intricately simple and accessible designs.
I will miss him immensely.
Michael Rosenthal
San Jose, CA
I
I had the good fortune to grow up in a Marcel Beaudin designed home at 260 Crescent Rd in Burlington. We moved into the house in 1961, and it wasn’t until years later I realized not all houses were designed with “form following function”. I loved growing up in our house so much, I found it necessary to call upon Marcel’s gifted mind over and over again. Needless to say, once you’ve lived in a wonderfully designed home environment, it becomes a necessity! Marcel’s work is unmatched in my opinion. This doesn’t begin to explain how Marcel became part of our family, and my father’s closest friend. Throughout my childhood, I don’t think more than a week or two went by without seeing Marcel. As an adult, my VT visits over the years always included a stop to see Marcel at his office or at home with Ruth. I’m going to miss Marcel; he has left an indelible mark on my life.
Barbara Rosenthal
Marcel’s talent touched these addresses:
260 Crescent Rd, Burlington VT
1035 Douglas St, San Francisco CA
644 College Ave, Boulder CO
900 Valley Ln, Boulder CO
311 Antero Place, Superior CO