Rick Carbin died at his home in Barnard on Wednesday, July 21, 2021, surrounded by family. Rick was born in Jersey City, New Jersey, on September 17, 1939, to Margaret Louise (Hull) and Edward Francis Carbin, the second of two sons. He was predeceased by both parents and his older brother, Edward.

Rick graduated from Tenafly, New Jersey, High School in 1957. After a year attending William and Mary College, he enlisted in the U.S. Army. He attended the Army Language School, in Monterey, California, where he learned Russian, before reporting to West Germany as a translator. During his tour in Germany, he met Ursula Crass, and they were married upon returning to the U.S., in 1961. Rick and Ursula had two children, Gregory, born in 1962, and Deborah, born in 1963. During this busy time of raising a young family, Rick returned to school and graduated with a B.A. in International Relations with a focus on Russia, from Rutgers University, in 1964.

Rick entered Rutgers Graduate School in the mid-1960s but a growing interest in college administration and planning quickly transitioned to a job with Rutgers University Scheduling and Space Utilization Department, where he became the youngest director of a university department, and oversaw the first computerized scheduling system at Rutgers, by the late 1960s.

During childhood, Rick developed an early connection to farm and forest land, when he and his parents spent many summers on a family farm in Blairstown, New Jersey. His passion for historic preservation, and the importance of countryside and community, arose from a deep appreciation of history, and his experiences in Europe in the 1960s. So, despite his early career success at Rutgers in New Jersey, he yearned for greener pastures (and hills), and moved with his family to Vermont in 1973.

In Vermont, Rick and family started their own small farm on Mt. Hunger Road, in Barnard. He also worked for the Upper Valley Area Agency on Aging, before becoming Executive Director of the Ottauqueechee Regional Planning Commission, in 1975. Working with Upper Valley communities and land owners in central Vermont to preserve the rural character and "sense of place" became Rick's true passion. In order to better accomplish these objectives, he founded the Ottauquechee Regional Land Trust and later became the first President of the Vermont Land Trust, in 1977.

Working in the non-profit realm, between local and state government community efforts, and private conservation, the Vermont Land Trust (VLT) quickly expanded to take on a variety of important forest and farmland protection and conservation efforts throughout the state. From Shelburne Farms, to natural protection corridors along the Appalachian and Long Trails, to working with the Woodstock Foundation and the National Park Service on the establishment of the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Park, Historic Farm, and Museum, in Woodstock, land trust concepts and conservation efforts became established through Rick's hard work and vision. These efforts have been recognized throughout the global land conservation community as significant and long-lasting. Rick was rightly proud of these and many more achievements, and the fact that the VLT has established itself as a world-renowned non-profit land conservation organization, now closing in on the protection and preservation of nearly 700,000 acres of Vermont forests, farms, and historic areas.

Rick understood and cared about the connections between the land and the people in the surrounding communities. Early innovative efforts contributed to the establishment of low-income Mellishwood Housing for elderly residents, in Woodstock, in the mid-1970s. He was a key leader in the successful effort to enact legislation establishing the Vermont Housing and Conservation Trust Fund in 1987, which in turn led to a rapid acceleration of both land conservation and affordable housing programs throughout the state.

After retiring from the Vermont Land Trust in 1990, Rick worked a year with the Countryside Institute, funded through the Orton Family Foundation (Vermont Country Store). He moved a short distance down the road from the original family homestead, to a smaller 15 acre home site, in 1995. He met Calee Simpson, in 1998, and she became a close companion and neighbor. Calee and Rick enjoyed traveling Vermont's back roads and visiting special places in the U.S. and England. Calee also cared for Rick as he became ill with cancer. Together, they shared their passions for preservation and the solitude of the Vermont countryside.

Despite his illness, Rick greatly enjoyed working part-time as an interpretive guide at the Billings Farm and Museum, in Woodstock, into his 80 ^th year. A crowning achievement in community action and preservation for Rick came when he helped rally a citizens group around saving the Barnard General Store from permanent closure, in 2012. His innate ability to see ways forward when other avenues were closed culminated in the successful purchase of the Barnard General Store by the newly formed non-profit Barnard Community Trust. The subsequent transfer of the store's management to new ownership in recent years has been a success and has allowed this beautiful landmark at the center of a small town to remain open for business. Thus, the very heart of a very rural Vermont community continues to beat; preserved, protected, and proud, in part, due to Rick's vision, and his love for the town he called home for nearly 50 years.

Rick is survived by his first wife, Ursula; second wife, Sharleen; his son and daughter-in-law, Gregory and Lisa; daughter, Deborah; and long-time friend and partner, Calee. Grandchildren include Morriah (Bryan); Jonathan (Grace); and Christopher (Sylvia).

Donations in Rick's memory can be made to the Vermont Land Trust, https://vlt.org/support . In honor of his wishes, no service is planned. However, a remembrance party for family and acquaintances will occur at a later date. An online guestbook can be found at https://www.cabotfh.com/ .