Patricia Foulkes

Born: 01/30/1944

St. Louis, MO

Died: 09/23/2026

Burlington, VT

Details of service:

Patricia’s friends and family will hold a celebration of her life on November 8th at 3 p.m. at the Unitarian Church of Montpelier with a reception to follow.

Patricia “Pat” Foulkes of Montpelier passed away unexpectedly on September 23, 2026, at the age of 82.

Born in St. Louis to Carl and Margaret Leupold, she moved at age eight to Jacksonville, Florida where she grew up alongside her two brothers. She graduated from Florida Presbyterian College (now Eckerd College) in 1965 and soon drove west to Sonoma County, California where she settled and raised her daughter. Pat earned her master’s degree in special education from San Francisco State University and spent her career teaching for Sonoma County as well as for Santa Rosa Junior College.

Pat had a creative and adventurous spirit. She loved travel of any kind, from flying in her father’s Cessna to driving coast to coast in her Scamp trailer with her beloved dog Jackson, making friends all along the way. In later years, she took up kayaking and spent happy hours on Vermont’s lakes and ponds with her daughter and close friends. From her childhood in Florida through her last summer in Vermont, Pat loved being in the water, floating, swimming and laughing with her grandchildren. She walked the woods of Hubbard Park often, usually with a rescue dog at her side, and had a special love for the beech trees that hold their curled leaves through the winter. Pat was a lifelong ceramist with a focus on Raku pottery as well as a painter, bringing color and imagination to every part of her life.

Above all, Pat delighted in her family in whom she found a deep well of happiness and love that both surprised and completed her. She treasured the smallest moments with those she loved: building extravagant creations with Legos, weekly painting dates, cooking breakfasts and walks through the woods. You could always hear her strong “woohoo” from the sports sideline.

Pat was devoted to her community and lifted up her friends in countless ways. She was strong and vibrant until the very end and she will be deeply missed by all who knew her.

She is survived by her daughter Sian Foulkes and Sian’s partner, Eyrich Stauffer; her beloved grandchildren Kathryn and Calvin; her brothers John and Stephen Leupold; her nieces and nephews Grady Leupold, Ashley Juiliani and Nick Leupold; and the many friends she loved, supported and leaned on in both California and Vermont.

Patricia’s friends and family will hold a celebration of her life on November 8th at 3 p.m. at the Unitarian Church of Montpelier with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift in her name to the Central Vermont Humane Society or Hubbard Park in Montpelier.

Arrangements are in the care of Guare & Sons Funeral Home. To share online condolences, please visit www.guareandsons.com.

Read the story on VTDigger here: Patricia Foulkes.

Courtesy of VT Digger