Susan J. Barton

MONTPELIER - Susan J. Barton, 69, a long-time Montpelier resident, passed away peacefully on May 18th, 2025, in her son’s home surrounded by love and family until her last moments. Already missing her profoundly are her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren whom she adored above all else. Her siblings, nieces, and nephews in Maine and Georgia are also deeply mourning – Susan put family first in all that she did, accepted everyone on their own terms and loved them no matter what. Her kindness, generosity of spirit, and dedication to family is her legacy – those of us who knew and loved Susan aspire to live up to these same values.
Born and raised in Maine with three sisters and two brothers, Susan went international for a short time and moved to Eel River Bar, a Mi’kmaq First Nation in New Brunswick, Canada and then married her husband, Thomas Caplin. They moved back to Maine and then to Vermont in the early 80s to raise their family of two with a third on the way. As the universe would have it, they parted ways. Susan then met her longtime life partner, Walter Baldwin Sr., and added two more children to the clan, and they raised the five youngsters together: Tin, SueAnne, Jennifer, Crystal, and Walter Jr. Being a Catholic Irish-American, Susan always wanted a large loving family: she is survived by 5 children, 6 granddaughters, 2 grandsons, 3 great grandchildren and 2 more on the way! Susan cherished all her family and traveled frequently to Maine to visit her extended family, while camping and visiting Old Orchard Beach. She especially enjoyed spending time at her beloved younger sister Peggy’s home where she spent days visiting with family. She was predeceased by her sister Peggy, her mother Margaret, her father Charles, and her partner Walter.
Susan was a dedicated and hard worker. She found her passion in cleaning: “Cleanliness is next to Godliness” was a phrase heard often in her home – while her family were holding their noses and complaining that she used too much bleach! She successfully turned this value into employment as a commercial custodian and was happy to go to work each day for decades. She was proud to work with Keurig DR Pepper (formerly Green Mountain Coffee Roasters) as a contractor then a full employee for 23 years where she was awarded and recognized for her positive spirit, hard work, dedication, and loyalty. When Keurig moved out of Vermont, she transitioned to a career with the State of Vermont Buildings and General Services Department providing custodial services in several buildings where human services were provided. She said she felt it was her duty to keep things sanitary to help people stay healthy. She doubled down on this commitment through the pandemic being an essential worker. And her new employment brought co-workers who soon became part of her extended family.
Susan spent much of her life raising her children and working, but she liked to let her hair down every so often and periodically played Bingo or scratch off tickets and took the occasional trip to a regional casino. She loved the thrill and excitement of possibly winning big bucks! But even when she won – no matter the amount - she would always split the winnings with her friends and family. She also liked to go shopping for others, finding special gifts for those dear to her. She had a special admiration for angels – her shelves nearly overflowing with angel statutes! She had an artistic and crafty side that she rarely got to express, but one year she skillfully sewed three coordinated Easter dresses for her daughters. She also loved flowers – and though she wouldn’t have considered herself a pro-gardener, she spent many summers digging in the dirt with her children and grandchildren. Her son learnt gardening from her and student became teacher with large gardens and each spring a colorful “Tulipmania” blooming in his yards: her final days were filled with daily bouquets from these gardens. Most of all though, Susan liked gathering family for Sunday dinners or BBQs or birthday parties - she just loved sitting around the table and chatting while sharing coffee and food.
Though filled with love, Susan’s life also included some significant hardships – at times being a single mother, living for periods with inadequate economic resources, being homeless three times, and experiencing intimate partner violence – and yet she always remained resilient and worked hard for a better, brighter future. And these hardships along with her faith also galvanized in her the desire to go the extra mile to help anyone else in need. She regularly “adopted” the neighborhood kids and welcomed them to the dinner table just as one of her own. She loved life and would never let anything stop her. Even when diagnosed with breast cancer and then lung cancer, she resisted the need to be out of work wanting to remain active and maintain her normal routine. And she fought hard to return to work in this final year – she didn’t like sitting idle or letting down her work team, especially as she now considered them family. The support and grace her work colleagues offered as her health declined was a blessing she so appreciated even when hard to accept. For her entire life, Susan gave all of herself to anyone she loved and to anyone in need – and in the end, she was able to finally realize there was so much love and beauty in accepting help too.
Susan was dearly loved and is deeply missed by all who knew her. Susan was buried in the Green Mount Cemetery in Montpelier, Vermont on May 20th, 2025, with her immediate family. A Memorial Mass will be held at 11:00am on June 16, 2025, at St. Augustine’s Church in Montpelier followed by a luncheon gathering to celebrate her life. In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift to Capstone Community Action in Barre, Vermont.
Arrangements are in the care of Pruneau-Polli Funeral Home, 58 Summer St. in Barre.
Those wishing to express online condolences may do so at www.pruneaupollifuneralhome.com