One year after Honorée Fleming was killed in Castleton, Vermont State University has launched a memorial fund to honor its late dean of education.
The Dean Honorée Fleming Memorial Financial Aid Fund will provide financial assistance to students at Vermont State University’s Castleton campus who share Fleming’s “values and qualities” — particularly women pursuing degrees in science and those with financial need who are nearing graduation, according to a press release issued Monday from the university.
Fleming, 77, was fatally shot on the D&H Rail Trail in Castleton on Oct. 5, 2023. A year later, investigators said there was still no suspect in the shooting and no major leads since police released a sketch of “a person of interest” in the homicide.
Shortly after she was killed, discussion about establishing a fund to honor Fleming began, an initiative of her husband, Ron Powers, and interim university President David Bergh.
“Honorée was brilliant in science and the loving center of our household,” Powers said in the release. “We held hands for 47 years.”
The fund’s current balance stands at about $15,000, according to Ernie Fernández, the university’s director of institutional advancement.
“It is a comfort to know that, in this way, Dean Fleming’s legacy within our Castleton community will endure, empowering current and future students to continue her work and carry forward her memory with purpose and dedication,” Bergh said in the release.
Read the story on VTDigger here: Vermont State University announces financial aid fund to honor Honorée Fleming.