Vermont

Obituary: Kaleb Bates-Wolcott, 1982-2024

Published

2 years ago

May 4, 2024

Press Room

Obituary: Kaleb Bates-Wolcott, 1982-2024

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Courtesy
Kaleb Bates-Wolcott

This
obituary is written in honor of Kaleb’s life and memory.

Kaleb
Asher Bates-Wolcott was born at home in Elmore, Vt., on June 17.
1982. He died peacefully in the early morning on April 18, 2024, at
Central Vermont Medical Center in Barre, Vt., at the age of 41. He
had bravely, as the warrior he was, coped with muscular dystrophy
throughout his lifetime. Kaleb was an amazing human being. He was
strong-willed, intelligent, kind and generous, with a great sense of
humor — a good listener who patiently listened to the worried well
at his bedside.

Kaleb
lost his ability to walk at age 12 and creatively and fiercely
adapted to his life in an electric wheelchair. His top priority was
his social life. In Wauwatosa, Wis., he learned early that to meet
people he had to reach out to them, first by ignoring their fears and
biases of the disabled, and then disarming them with his wit and
humor. He quickly got a paper route with a friend who rode on the
back of his chair at top speed, while pitching papers onto lawns. In
high school, he began to watch cooking shows with a friend after
school, which developed into 15-20 teens regularly testing new
recipes in the kitchen into the early hours of the morning. Kaleb
prided himself on directing and inspiring his friends on how to
appreciate and cook good food. (His mother bought the groceries.
“Really, you NEED Chilean sea bass?”) Kaleb also had an eclectic
taste in music, ranging from Frank Sinatra to Wu-Tang Clan, obscure
local hip-hop to Coldplay and classical to jazz. While attending
Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin, he began, on
his own, to investigate the music scene in Milwaukee. Security guards
at each venue soon realized he wasn’t safe in the raucous crowds,
so he watched from backstage and met many famous musicians along the
way.

He
took in the world through conversations, food, art, music and film.
These hours of study resulted in critical and categorical knowledge
of just about everything, including the existence of bigfoot and
ancient aliens. He entertained all ages at his bedside by figuring
out what people’s tastes were and introducing them all to new
movies or the latest series or video game. Kaleb was supported, loved
and cared for by a large group of extended family, friends and
caregivers whom he cared for deeply.

Kaleb’s
immediate family members include his parents, James G. Wolcott, of
Jeffersonville, Vt., and Barbara A. Bates, of Westmoreland, N.H.; his
siblings, Eliza Bates-Wolcott, of Fayston, Vt., and Ezra Bates
-Wolcott, of Traverse City, Mich.; his nephews, Elijah Wolcott, of
Descanso, Calif., and Jackson Craig, of Fayston, Vt.; his niece,
Lilliana Hoy, of Sandy, Utah, and his maternal grandmother, Janet
Mckallor Beck, of Westmoreland, N.H.

A
Viking celebration of life will be held at a later date, with close
friends and family.

In
memory of Kaleb, consider donating to the charity of your choice.
“Pay it forward!”

He
would like that.

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Vermont

Wrong-way driver stopped on I-89, charged with DUI

Published

12 hours ago

April 19, 2026

Press Room

Wrong-way driver stopped on I-89, charged with DUI

BOLTON, Vt. (WCAX) – A wrong-way driver was safely stopped on Interstate 89 overnight Sunday.

Vermont State Police say just before 12:30 a.m., they stopped the car near marker 77, near Bolton.

The driver, Denise Lear, 60, of Revere, was charged with driving under the influence and gross negligent operation.

Lear is expected in court Monday.

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Vermont

Women’s Lacrosse Bested in Burlington by Vermont – University at Albany Great Danes

Published

24 hours ago

April 18, 2026

Press Room

Women’s Lacrosse Bested in Burlington by Vermont – University at Albany Great Danes

Score: UAlbany 4, Vermont 14

Location: Virtue Field | Burlington, Vt.

Records: UAlbany (10-5, 5-1 America East) | Vermont (8-6, 4-1 America East)

Short Story: UAlbany women’s lacrosse fell to the Vermont Catamounts on Saturday afternoon.

Key Stats

Grace Cincebox recorded a total of 14 saves with 13 goals allowed for a .565 save percentage.

Ravan Marsell led the Great Danes with two points on one goal and one assist.

Four different UAlbany players scored in the contest.

Reggie Williams was the team’s leader with three ground balls.

Delilah Mile caused a team high three turnovers.

How It Happened

The Catamounts came out of the gates hard and heavy, scoring all three goals between both sides in the first quarter.

Vermont would take an 8-0 lead in the second quarter before Amanda Williamson found the back of the net on a women-down goal to put the Great Danes on the board and make it 8-1.

The Great Danes would allow one more goal in the first half to trail 9-1 after 30-minutes of play.

Grace Cincebox would enter the half with 10 saves.

Riley Forthofer started the Great Danes off in the second half to make it a 9-2 game, before Vermont put up three more goals to take a 12-2 lead entering the final quarter of play.

Mya Carroll and Ravan Marsell both scored on back-to-back free-position goals to make it a 12-4 game.

The Catamounts finished the game with two more goals to take the win 14-4.

Up Next
The Great Danes will next have a bye week and wait to see the outcome of next week’s Vermont vs UMass Lowell game to see who will host the America East Tournament.

Social Central: Stay up to date with UAlbany women’s lacrosse by following the team on Instagram (@UAlbanyWLax), Facebook (UAlbany Women’s Lacrosse), and X (@UAlbanyWLax) for all of the latest news and highlights throughout the year.

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Vermont

Vermont lands two cities in America’s top 15 happiest list

Published

1 day ago

April 18, 2026

Press Room

Vermont lands two cities in America’s top 15 happiest list

Is creativity the missing key to better health?

Research suggests creative activities like art, music and crafts may benefit mental health as much as other key health habits.

Here’s another reason Vermont is the best New England state: It’s home to one of the top 5 happiest cities in the United States.

Plus, it has another within the top 15.

Massachusetts, on the other hand, doesn’t even break the top 50. Nor, does Connecticut or Rhode Island.

The personal finance website analyzed 182 of the largest cities in the country, and ranked Boston 63rd overall. Although the city is home to some of the nation’s top universities, high-ranking hospitals, and well-regarded companies, it didn’t break the top 50.

To get the rankings, WalletHub compared the cities using 29 metrics, including life-satisfaction index, depression rate, poverty rate, job security, and acres of parkland per 1,000 residents. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, and cities were assigned an overall happiness score.

Here’s a look at how the cities ranked.

South Burlington is No. 4 happiest city, Burlington is No. 11

South Burlington came on top for Vermont in WalletHub’s list of the happiest cities in the United States, ranking at No. 4. In scored very high for emotional and physical well-being coming in at the No. 4 spot, which made up for coming in No. 48 for community and environment. It was No. 9 for income and employment ranking. That gave it a total happiness of score of 70.15

Burlington wasn’t far behind at all, taking the No. 11 spot on the list and a happiness score of 67.54. It’s highest score was for income and employment ranking where it came second. It ranked No. 13 for community and environment and No. 21 for emotional and physical well-being.