Waterbury Center resident was a force in the affordable housing community with an infectious passion for life
Emily Hallett Higgins died on November 10, 2023, at her home in Waterbury Center, Vt. She was 47. It’s impossible to capture here the beauty and force of her spirit, the restless power of her creativity, her profound commitment to justice, and the joyous passion she had for family, friendship, exploration and reinvention. The greatest love of her life was the love she had for her two boys, Cashel, 15, and Ryan, 11. They returned her love fiercely. We all did. We all do. Emily died of a heart attack. There had been no warning, no signs. She was with us, smiling and laughing, and then she was gone. Her passing leaves us shocked and heartbroken and shattered. It doesn’t feel real. It never will. But her life fills us with gratitude and wonder. A graduate of St. Johnsbury Academy and Wellesley College, Emily went on to become a force in the affordable housing community, earning the respect and admiration of colleagues and partners in Vermont and across the country. She started her career at AIDS Housing of Washington in Seattle in 2001. After moving to Vermont in 2003, she spent 12 years at Champlain Housing Trust, where she directed its homeownership programs and helped countless people find a safe, caring place for them and their families to call home. Emily then moved to the Vermont Department for Children and Families and took on a position overseeing all state and federal housing grants for people without shelter. She worked most recently at the Vermont Department of Corrections, where she was responsible for managing the grants that provide housing for people returning from incarceration. Emily loved to travel on her own or with friends and family to new places, new countries, learning and experiencing as much as she could along the way. She had a knack for languages and could be found chatting to cab drivers the world over while on her way to another adventure. Over the years, she spent more and more time making art, whether it was drawing, painting or creating metal sculptures. Any trip with Emily through the hills of her beloved home state of Vermont was bound to include pulling over and loading some frighteningly jagged and rusted piece of scrap metal into her car that she’d later turn into something unexpected and gorgeous. Emily was born in St. Johnsbury, Vt., in 1975. She grew…
Waterbury Center resident was a force in the affordable housing community with an infectious passion for life
Emily Hallett Higgins died on November 10, 2023, at her home in Waterbury Center, Vt. She was 47. It’s impossible to capture here the beauty and force of her spirit, the restless power of her creativity, her profound commitment to justice, and the joyous passion she had for family, friendship, exploration and reinvention. The greatest love of her life was the love she had for her two boys, Cashel, 15, and Ryan, 11. They returned her love fiercely. We all did. We all do. Emily died of a heart attack. There had been no warning, no signs. She was with us, smiling and laughing, and then she was gone. Her passing leaves us shocked and heartbroken and shattered. It doesn’t feel real. It never will. But her life fills us with gratitude and wonder. A graduate of St. Johnsbury Academy and Wellesley College, Emily went on to become a force in the affordable housing community, earning the respect and admiration of colleagues and partners in Vermont and across the country. She started her career at AIDS Housing of Washington in Seattle in 2001. After moving to Vermont in 2003, she spent 12 years at Champlain Housing Trust, where she directed its homeownership programs and helped countless people find a safe, caring place for them and their families to call home. Emily then moved to the Vermont Department for Children and Families and took on a position overseeing all state and federal housing grants for people without shelter. She worked most recently at the Vermont Department of Corrections, where she was responsible for managing the grants that provide housing for people returning from incarceration. Emily loved to travel on her own or with friends and family to new places, new countries, learning and experiencing as much as she could along the way. She had a knack for languages and could be found chatting to cab drivers the world over while on her way to another adventure. Over the years, she spent more and more time making art, whether it was drawing, painting or creating metal sculptures. Any trip with Emily through the hills of her beloved home state of Vermont was bound to include pulling over and loading some frighteningly jagged and rusted piece of scrap metal into her car that she’d later turn into something unexpected and gorgeous. Emily was born in St. Johnsbury, Vt., in 1975. She grew…
