Louise Belden Kolvoord, née Edith Louise Belden, 94, of Essex, Vt., died of complications from liver disease on June 22, 2024.
Louise was born on June 3, 1930, in Burlington, Vt., the daughter of the late Ashley Belden and Jean MacKay Belden. Louise is also predeceased by her brothers, Duane, Rodney and Roger.
Louise graduated from Burlington High School and the Faulkner School of Nursing in Boston. Upon graduation, she worked for a couple of years in the Boston area and then returned to Vermont and began a career as a public health nurse, working with the Vermont Department of Health. In November 1960, she married Philip Amidon Kolvoord. Upon the birth of her two sons, she gave up her nursing career to raise them, and she got involved in a variety of volunteer activities, as well as the First Congregational Church of Essex, where she was a longtime member. Louise served on the Visiting Nurses’ Association Board for a number of years and as a Red Cross volunteer nurse. She was very active in the Burlington Garden Club for many years and served a term as president in the 1970s. Louise was a charter member of the Essex League of Women Voters. She was an elected justice of the peace and delighted in conducting marriage ceremonies on her front lawn, overlooking Mount Mansfield. She was an avid sports fan and loved to watch her beloved Celtics and Red Sox. She also loved gardening, flowers, tennis, travel and her extended family.
Louise is survived by her son, Robert Andrew, as well as Robert’s wife, Holly Haney, and her grandchildren, Andrew, Zachary and Abigail Kolvoord. Visiting hours will be on Thursday, August 8, 5 to 7 p.m., at Corbin and Palmer Funeral Home, 9 Pleasant St., Essex Junction. A celebration of life ceremony will be held on Friday, August 9, 2 p.m., at First Congregational Church in Essex Junction. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to First Congregational Church, 39 Main St., Essex Junction, VT 05452.