Meet the staff that keeps Midd going

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They clean your dorm, wash your dishes and sort your mail. You see their faces everyday, but rarely do you get a glimpse into their lives. The Campus has torn down the wall between student and staff to reveal the stories, interests and hobbies behind Midd's everyday heroes.


Kirk Sabourin: From the Battlefield to Midd's Battell

"Middlebury is my home stomping ground," says Custodian Kirk Sabourin with a smile as he wipes off the mirrors in the Battell South men's bathroom. Raised on a farm in the Addison County area, Sabourin attended class in Twilight when it was a middle school and graduated from Middlebury Union High School in 1976. Multi-talented, he has held a variety of careers in Vermont.

After receiving an Associate's Degree in Education from Castleton State College, Sabourin worked with children with special needs at the Vermont Education Center. At the same time, he served as a herdsman on a 500-cow farm and sold feed for the Paris Farmers Union before becoming employed by the College in 2004.

Sabourin says he particularly liked farming, specifically matching bulls and cows to breed in order to ensure the passing on of specific traits.

But Sabourin's life has not always been that of a rural farmer. An eight year member of the National Guard, he was stationed in Saudi Arabia in 1990-1991 during the Gulf War. Sabourin felt "surprised" when he heard that he would be defending his country abroad. As a member of the National Guard, he said he had expected to serve mostly within the state, but "when you put on a uniform, you're a soldier first before anything." He soon found himself in the Middle East. There he was ranked as a Specialist and worked as a welder in a machine shop. He still recalls the demanding state of always being ready with a gas mask and weapon, which was "nerve-wracking and quite broadening." Sabourin is nonetheless glad that the goal of liberating Kuwait was accomplished.

These days, when he's not in Battell, Sabourin stays busy with a range of activities. Every day after work he takes his 17-year-old Australian shepherd, "Checkers," for a walk. He also sings in the Catholic Church choir. Family-oriented, Sabourin lives with and cares for his mother. He has three brothers who live in surrounding states and looks forward to spending the holidays with them. Although he has never been spotted dancing down the dormitory halls, Sabourin swing-dances with other members of the community on Monday nights at the athletic center. It seems only fitting that Sabourin now works within a liberal arts community, as he truly is a Renaissance man.

-H. Kay Merriman, Staff Writer


David Larose: Signed, sealed, delivered, he's yours

Mail Center Supervisor David Larose detests liver and onions and cell phones. When not pampering his cat or watching "Law and Order," he is probably off in the mountains camping. Larose has a soft spot for "old gangster movies of the 30s," and if he had a day off he says he would spend it at a state camping ground, hiking, starting a fire, listening to a baseball game on the radio or sitting back watching a movie with a glass of Merlot and some cheese and crackers. He's also a Vietnam War veteran.

Larose is one of the people responsible for the "half-price" textbooks and every other package students receive in the mail at Middlebury. Having worked as the College's Mail Center supervisor since 1985, along with Mail Clerks Pam Sands and Tracey Smith, he is responsible for distributing over one million pieces of mail every year to students, faculty and staff.

Larose moved from Bristol to Middlebury 25 years ago after marrying his wife Carolyn, who works as the administrative associate in the Athletics department. He loves the camaraderie of the College and enjoys riding to work and eating lunch with his wife, which he does nearly everyday.

At the Mail Center, his pet peeve is people who lack manners. He wants people to understand the amount of physical work his team endures in order to distribute nearly fifty thousand packages a year. Having spent half of his life as the supervisor of the Mail Center, he has found that "please" and "thank you" go a long way.

A fan of the New York Giants, Boston Celtics and New York Yankees, Larose hopes to spend two weeks traveling on a baseball tour around the United States (his wife willing) once he retires. Some of his most enjoyable moments at Middlebury have been his 10 years keeping the clock for the basketball team and making signs in the wintertime for the NCAA hockey playoffs.

Larose also loves music, television and movies - he has over 700 CD's and 800 albums. He vividly recalls attending some of his favorite concerts, including the last concert of the Bruce Springsteen tour and a concert by U2, where he says his "hair stood up on [his] arms and the music hit [his] soul."

He also attends a blues festival in Canada every year because he loves to hear "something that's different." Some of his favorite movies are Field of Dreams and They Shoot Horses Don't They, which is about marathon partner dancing. The last movie he watched was Flags of Our Fathers with his 80-year-old father.

So the next time you need to pick up your home-baked cookies, or that Amazon shopping order, don't be afraid to talk to Larose about the hockey game, the Beatles or, maybe if you're daring, you can even try to convince him that a cell phone is a good idea.

-Oscar Loyo, Staff Writer


Stephen Draper: The Dr. Proctor

When Dining Room Servery Worker Stephen Draper - or more fondly known as Dr. Proctor - recalls the Middlebury of his youth, it is clear that he is somewhat of a Middlebury legend. It will have been 18 years ago on Mar. 4 that Draper joined the College dining staff.

Some of the older students know Draper for his ability to offer comforting conversation after a stressful day of class. "If it wasn't for some of the students, I wouldn't hardly know anybody," Draper said, adding, "I don't know very many people."

"A lot of the students call me The Doctor," Draper said. "Why they did this was because I was the only one who could keep up and deal with the students at the same time."

Draper is more than just the man the students see so attentively arranging the stacks of tumblers and wiping up spills at Proctor Dining Hall. He lives a quiet life outside of his time spent amongst the chatter of hungry students. It's as if you can see the years flip by as he delves into the far reaches of his memory for thoughts of long ago. Draper moved to Middlebury when he was 16 and has witnessed the slow small town changes that have slowly infiltrated the town.

"Well, there have been a lot of changes over the years. Everything is a lot different now, a lot of changes," he said. Maybe now at times we've got more people than we can deal with. With the increase in people they don't try to make changes with increase in people and buildings."

Some of his most vivid memories recall the extended camping trips he took in earlier years to places like Yellowstone National Park. He fondly recalls the freedom and vitality that surround these memories.

"When I was youngerÖI went where I wanted to go," he said. "Now, I still do a little camping. I go to New Hampshire and Maine and some of those places."

After a long week of putting other's needs before his own, Draper enjoys relaxing at home with his dog Punky, a blue-tipped Pomeranian.

"Friday and Saturday I'm here about half a day," Draper said, "[After that] I spend some time with the dog, spend a little time at home."

An admitted sports fanatic, Draper pays close attention to college athletics. In the evenings and on the weekends he tunes into hockey games on WFAD and talk radio.

"I go to a few games. I watch cross-country, basketball a little bit. I
like the hockey very well, although I don't get into it as heavy as I used to," Draper said.

On those nights spent next to the radio, Draper enjoys the luxuries of his woodstove and the cheery heat it provides. Maintenance of the woodstove requires time and skill, but Draper finds it a simple pleasure.

"I have a woodstove at home, so I have that to deal with right now. I have electric heat, but I use the woodstove," Draper said, "I am not that crazy about electric heat."

Although Middlebury has been constantly evolving, Draper has remained much the same through these times of change, living a modest life end enjoying it to its fullest.

-Sara Black, Staff Writer