Obituary: Sarah Dopp, 1946-2024 

• Courtesy
• Sarah Dopp

Sarah Leigh Dopp, of Cheese Factory Rd., South Burlington, VT., left us, gently and suddenly, on March 7, 2024. She was born in Burlington to Leroy J. Dopp Jr. and Katharine (Eckley) Dopp on November 21, 1946.

Sarah attended South Burlington schools and graduated from the University of Vermont in 1968. She worked as a medical technologist at Mary Fletcher Hospital for 50 years. A work exchange program, in her early years there, led her to the United Kingdom, where she renewed her fascination with all things historical. She returned to UVM, where she received her MA in English.

Sarah tirelessly gave herself to her friends and the many organizations that were close to her heart. She was the founder and president of the South Burlington Land Trust. As a conservation champion, she donated 40 acres of her own land in the Southeast quadrant to be protected forever. She was also the volunteer leader of the Champlain Valley Conservation Partnership. Sarah was a longtime CSA member of the Intervale Community Farm and a devoted supporter of her neighbors at Bread & Butter Farm.

Sarah served as president of both the Chittenden County Historical Society and the Vermont Historical Society, where she was currently a trustee on their board. Sarah was a member of the First Baptist Church of Burlington for 63 years and served as the church moderator and historian, among myriad other roles. Sarah was a regular volunteer at Meals on Wheels and Age Well Vermont, and she loved UVM women's basketball. She never hesitated to take on any task, always with grace and cheer. She lived out her faith in all that she did.

Sarah was a great supporter of the arts. She served as president and supporter of the Craftsbury Chamber Players and donated her field to them during COVID, where they could perform outside with ease and joy. She sponsored the Katharine Dopp Organ Recital each year at First Baptist and supported the preservation and use of historic organs around Vermont.

Sentiment of place and the land — past and present — was so very important to Sarah Dopp. She kept records and documents of local history for all of us to learn from and value. Her love of the land, history and agriculture in Vermont, as well as her love of music and her great faith, were always within her, and she was proud to share it all. Sarah loved reading outside in the sunshine, especially in spring, with snowdrops and daffodils in bloom.

Sarah is survived by her first cousins, Sue Ellen Dopp, Douglas Dopp, Christopher Chase and Katrina Gorsky; and by countless friends.

All are welcome to attend a memorial service at the First Baptist Church of Burlington at 81 St. Paul St., on Friday, April 12, 2024, at 10 a.m. Those who would like to view the service remotely can receive a Zoom link by emailing [email protected]. In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift to the First Baptist Church Memorial Fund or the Vermont Historical Society.