3/6/2016 Elinor Earle dies; writer, athlete, friend ­ Stowe Reporter | The hometown newspaper for Stowe,Vermont.:

Obituaries http://www.stowetoday.com/stowe_reporter/community/obituaries/elinor­earle­dies­writer­athlete­friend/article_73738564­8d33­11e0­834c­001cc4c03286.html…

Elinor Earle dies; writer, athlete, friend

Posted: Thursday, June 2, 2011 2:00 pm Elinor Earle died peacefully at her home, Candlelight Cottage in Stowe, on Sunday, May 29. She was a warrior to the end, fighting cancer that by all medical prognoses should have taken her down several years ago. All of us who enjoyed those extra years with Elinor are profoundly grateful for her courage. The only attributes more formidable than her fighting spirit were her intellect and sharp wit. Elinor graduated from Rosemary Hall, attended Mt. Vernon College and studied at the Sorbonne Institute in Paris. She graduated from Boston Univer­sity, majoring in art history. Her love of fine art was a lifelong pursuit, influenced by her grandmother — her namesake — and her beloved High Pastures in Cape Neddick, Maine. After graduation, Elinor moved to Washington, D.C., where she worked as a curator at the Octagon House, the oldest museum in the United States. That is where she honed her skills as a writer and publicist, which became the foundation of her professional life for the next 30 years. Elinor met her husband, George Stearns, in Washington and settled into married life. But the Green Mountains of Vermont called both of them to Stowe in 1976, along with their presidential­namesake golden retrievers Hamilton and Madison. They quickly wove themselves into the fabric of the community. Her first job in Stowe was working in the public relations office at Copley Hospital. Elinor served on the board of directors of numerous organizations, including the Helen Day Art Center, Grass Roots Art and Community Effort (GRACE), and the Music Festival of the Americas at Stowe. Through her business, Earle Communications, Elinor’s clients included Cabot Creamery, Stoweflake Resort, Trapp Family Lodge, Rusty DeWees, Willinda, a consortium of Irish businesses, and the Vermont Center for Crime Victim Services. She was a frequent contributor to the Stowe Reporter and the Stowe Guide & Magazine. Elinor wrote over a dozen articles for the magazine, starting with a profile of her longtime friend and neighbor Elinor Earle died peacefully at her home, Candlelight Cottage in Stowe, on Sunday, May 29. 3/6/2016 Elinor Earle dies; writer, athlete, friend ­ Stowe Reporter | The hometown newspaper for Stowe,Vermont.: Obituaries http://www.stowetoday.com/stowe_reporter/community/obituaries/elinor­earle­dies­writer­athlete­friend/article_73738564­8d33­11e0­834c­001cc4c03286.html… 2/3 Charlie Lord, and ending with a small historical piece about the first A­frame built in the U.S., which happened to be in Stowe. In between, Elinor deftly tackled controversial subjects for the magazine, ranging from the fight to save the former Stowe High School building for use as a library and art center, to a look back to the time when some Stowe ski lodges were “restricted,” meaning that they excluded Jews from staying there. Elinor was an elegant, yet accessible, writer, and her most requested piece was her delicious — and extraordinarily well­researched — historical tome on Stowe’s glory days, when young, tony East Coasters roughed it at the Foster Place ski lodge. Her athletic determination was legendary. A friend once offered her $1,000 if she could finish in the top 10 in the Bonne Bell Run, a 10­kilometer race in Boston that attracted a high caliber of elite runners. The friend figured the money was safe in his bank, but when Elinor flashed across the line in the lead pack, out came the checkbook. Longtime Stowe friend Alan Thorndike vowed that Elinor would never cross the finish line ahead of him in the Stowe Derby. If she did, Alan promised to run around Elinor’s house in his birthday suit on the coldest night of the winter. After a frigid mad dash around the house the night after the Derby, Alan learned never to challenge Elinor again. Elinor also excelled on the tennis court. Accompanying every laser­perfect alley shot was a gracious condolence to her opponent about making a good effort. Elinor won the women’s singles trophy twice and the women’s doubles championship five times with Adi Barnett and one time with Claudia Elliman at the Stowe Tennis Club. Following an amicable end to her marriage, Elinor migrated to New York City for a while, but it did not take long for her to return to Candlelight Cottage. She then connected with her partner for life, Gwen Stevens, and the two embarked on a 22­year journey of exploration, work and happiness. They launched several business ventures together, most notably a catalog titled The Best of Vermont, Celebrating 200 Years, which showcased some of Vermont’s finest artisans and food products. Adventure and humor entwined their lives. The Ellegwents, as they became known, purchased an RV in 1991 and cruised the country. They landed in Tucson, Ariz., where they wintered for 15 years. Their world tour in 1997 girdled the globe. Emails during the tour kept their friends enthralled with tales of exotic locations and daring escapades. The Pacific Ocean beckoned, and five years ago they built an open­air palapa on the Bay of Banderas outside Puerto Vallarta. The palapa is accessible only by donkey if by land, or boat if by sea. Survivors also include her mother, Clementine Earle; a sister, Patricia Ouimet and husband Jacques; 3/6/2016 Elinor Earle dies; writer, athlete, friend ­ Stowe Reporter | The hometown newspaper for Stowe,Vermont.: Obituaries http://www.stowetoday.com/stowe_reporter/community/obituaries/elinor­earle­dies­writer­athlete­friend/article_73738564­8d33­11e0­834c­001cc4c03286.html… 3/3 a brother, John Earle and wife Babbie; and nieces and nephews Maeghen Ouimet, Eliot Earle, Johnny Earle, Justin Earle, Emily Earle and Tathum Earle. Gwen’s children Christopher Kehoe and Ashley Kehoe enjoyed a special relationship with Elinor. No remembrance of Elinor would be complete without honoring her and Gwen’s feline companions Crybaby and Nina and remembering Lulu, Elinor’s Vietnamese pot­bellied pig. Gwen was an extraordinary caregiver throughout Elinor’s battle with cancer and was by her side when Elinor died. At Elinor’s request, there will be no formal memorial service. Instead, a celebration is planned later in the summer. In the meantime, donations can be made to North Country Animal League, 16 Mountain View Meadow Road, Morristown, VT 05661; or Habitat for Humanity, 121 Habitat St., Americus, GA 31709­3498; or the World Monuments Fund, 350 5th Ave., Suite 2412, New York, NY 10118. This obituary is principally the work of Alan Thorndike, augmented by close friends of Elinor Earle.